Questors, Jesters and Renegades - The Story of Britain's Amateur Theatre

This is the vital story of the amateur theatre as it developed from the medieval guilds to the modern theatre of Ayckbourn and Pinter, with a few mishaps and missed cues along the way. Michael Coveney ‿ a former member of Ilford's Renegades - tells this tale with a charm and wit that will have you shouting out for an encore. Between the two world wars, amateur theatre thrived across the UK, from Newcastle to Norwich, from Bolton to Birmingham and Bangor, championed by the likes of George Bernard Shaw, Sybil Thorndike, and J B Priestley. Often born out of a particular political cause or predicament, many of these theatres and companies continue to evolve, survive and even prosper today. This is the first account of its kind, packed with anecdote and previously unheard stories, and it shows how amateur theatre is more than a popular pastime: it has been endemic to the birth of the National Theatre, as well as a seedbed of talent and a fascinating barometer and product of the times in which we live. Some of the companies Coveney delves into ‿ all taking centre stage in this entertaining and lively book - include the Questors and Tower Theatre in London; Birmingham's Crescent Theatre; The Little Theatre in Bolton, where Ian McKellen was a schoolboy participant; the Halifax Thespians; Lincolnshire's Broadbent Theatre, co-founded by Jim Broadbent's father and other conscientious objectors at the end of World War II; Crayford's Geoffrey Whitworth Theatre, where the careers of Michael Gambon and Diana Quick were launched; Anglesey's Theatr Fach, a crucible of Welsh language theatre; and Cornwall's stunning cliff-top Minack.

List of contents

Foreword by Kenneth Branagh
PROLOGUE

CHAPTER ONE: The Agony and the Ecstasy
CHAPTER TWO: Mysteries, fireworks and students
CHAPTER THREE: WHATEVER HAPPENED IN ILFORD?
CHAPTER FOUR: Modern stirrings in Newcastle, Norwich and Halifax
CHAPTER FIVE: LONDON PRIDE of the Questors and the Tower
CHAPTER SIX: Three non-professionals in profile: Robert Pennant Jones, Penny Tuerk and Michael Godley
CHAPTER SEVEN: All aboard for the national theatre
CHAPTER EIGHT: Amdram at the movies, in novels – and novel Hamlets
CHAPTER NINE: The magic of the Minack
CHAPTER TEN: Off -piste, and unknown territory in Lincolnshire, Bangor, Anglesey and Dumfries
CHAPTER ELEVEN: Riding the wave towards a brave new dawn

About the author

Michael Coveney was editor of Plays and Players and chief theatre critic, successively, on the Financial Times, the Observer, and the Daily Mail. His other books include a history of the Glasgow Citizens Theatre, and critical biographies of Mike Leigh, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Ken Campbell and Maggie Smith.

Summary

This is the vital story of the amateur theatre as it developed from the medieval guilds to the modern theatre of Ayckbourn and Pinter, with a few mishaps and missed cues along the way. Michael Coveney – a former member of Ilford's Renegades - tells this tale with a charm and wit that will have you shouting out for an encore.

Between the two world wars, amateur theatre thrived across the UK, from Newcastle to Norwich, from Bolton to Birmingham and Bangor, championed by the likes of George Bernard Shaw, Sybil Thorndike, and J B Priestley. Often born out of a particular political cause or predicament, many of these theatres and companies continue to evolve, survive and even prosper today.

This is the first account of its kind, packed with anecdote and previously unheard stories, and it shows how amateur theatre is more than a popular pastime: it has been endemic to the birth of the National Theatre, as well as a seedbed of talent and a fascinating barometer and product of the times in which we live.

Some of the companies Coveney delves into – all taking centre stage in this entertaining and lively book - include the Questors and Tower Theatre in London; Birmingham's Crescent Theatre; The Little Theatre in Bolton, where Ian McKellen was a schoolboy participant; the Halifax Thespians; Lincolnshire's Broadbent Theatre, co-founded by Jim Broadbent's father and other conscientious objectors at the end of World War II; Crayford's Geoffrey Whitworth Theatre, where the careers of Michael Gambon and Diana Quick were launched; Anglesey's Theatr Fach, a crucible of Welsh language theatre; and Cornwall's stunning cliff-top Minack.

Product details

• Authors: Michael Coveney, Coveney Michael
• Publisher: Methuen Drama
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 10.02.2022
• EAN: 9781350265752
• ISBN: 978-1-350-26575-2
• No. of pages: 216
• Dimensions: 156 mm x 232 mm x 18 mm
• Subjects: Fiction > Poetry, drama; Humanities, art, music > Art > Miscellaneous; PERFORMING ARTS / Theater / General, ART / Performance, Theatre Studies, Performance Art