Theatre and Film Stars in Reading for Beckett Charity Gala – University of Reading
29 September 1998A major exhibition of theatre photographs and a Samuel Beckett Charity Gala Evening in late November on the old London Road site of the University of Reading brings to the town more theatre, film and television stars than are to be found in most West End productions. The occasion is the finale to the USA's Annenberg Foundation's gift of an Arts Fellowship to the Beckett International Foundation at the University. The Annenberg Beckett Fellow this year is the well-known photographer, John Haynes, who, over a period of almost thirty years, took almost a thousand photos of Beckett and productions of his plays for the National Theatre, The Royal Court Theatre and the Peter Hall Company. Actors shown include Alan Dobie, Albert Finney, Julian Glover, Greg Hicks, Alan Howard, Ben Kingsley, Patrick Magee, Natasha Parry, Ronald Pickup, Stephen Rae, Madeleine Renaud and Billie Whitelaw. A specially mounted exhibition of Haynes' photographs, designed by the photographer himself and the University's Professor of Fine Art, Stephen Buckley, starts its European tour in Reading. The opening is by the Academy Award winning actress, Billie Whitelaw, on Sunday 22 November.