June 1950- June 1958
Schoolboy Acting

King Henry V "My acting began early and continued mostly at school. At Bolton School (1951-58) there were a number of lads who did as much acting as I did and, voracious theatre-goers, also went on the annual camp to Stratford-upon-Avon for the Shakespeare Festival. My best friends, David Hargreaves and Duncan Sculthorpe, and I were stage-struck and could alarm our peers by high-stepping routines across the playground. We all went to Cambridge, where Hargreaves ended up as Professor of Education. Sculthorpe wrote a classic study on aquatic plants. Motives other than acting itself sent me into the theatre." — Ian McKellen, December 2006

The Plays

1950	Wesleyan Hall Wigan	CHILDREN'S DAY Vera I Arlett	ROLE: Father
1952	Hopefield Miniature Theatre	TWELFTH NIGHT Extract (1952) William Shakespeare	ROLE: Malvolio
1952	Bolton Little Theatre	SPRING 1600 Emlyn Williams	ROLE: Jeremy
1952	Hopefield Miniature Theatre	LES MEURTRES CHEZ LE COIFFEUR Strachan Turnbull	ROLE: Mari de la Dame
1953	Bolton School Great Hall	FRIAR BACON & FRIAR BUNGAY (1953) Robert Greene	ROLE: Margaret
1953	Bolton Little Theatre	PARADISE PERPLEXED F Sladen-Smith	ROLE: Ticukapelli
1953	Bolton Little Theatre	THE HOPEFUL TRAVELLERS G-M Martens & A O Bey	ROLE: Demon
1953	Bolton Little Theatre	THE WONDER HAT Kenneth Sawyer Goodman & Ben Hecht	ROLE: Pierrot
1953	Hopefield Miniature Theatre	THE BEAUTY CONTEST L Roe & G A C Sawtell	ROLE: Rosie
1954	Bolton School	THE STARS BOW DOWN Gordon Daviot	ROLE: Asnath, the High Priest's daughter
1954	Hopefield Miniature Theatre	DOCTOR FAUSTUS (1954) Christopher Marlowe	ROLE: Wagner
1955	Bolton School	THE STORY OF RAHMAN Alan Cullen	ROLE: Attendant
1955	Bolton School	OTHELLO (1955) William Shakespeare	ROLE: Montano
1956	Bolton School	HENRY IV PART 2 (1956) William Shakespeare	ROLE: Prince Hal
1956	Chorley Old Road Congregational Hall	ESCAPADE Roger McDougall	ROLE: L W Daventry
1957	Bolton School	HENRY V (1957) William Shakespeare	ROLE: Henry V
1958	Bolton School	THE STRONG ARE LONELY Fritz Hochwaelder	ROLE: Alfonso Fernandez
1958	Bolton Little Theatre	TWELFTH NIGHT (1958) William Shakespeare	ROLE: Sebastian
1958	Bolton Middle School	MACBETH, ACT V (1958) William Shakespeare	DIRECTOR: Ian McKellen ROLE: Producer/Director

October 1958 - August 1961
Cambridge University Undergraduate Productions

The Plays

Stage Index

Plays by Title