Harold Pinter in The Hothouse (1995)
A fitting tribute, say campaigners
by Russ Lawrence for the Hackney Gazette
Calls have been made to resurrect a crumbling former Lower Clapton cinema as a lasting tribute to Harold Pinter, the Nobel Prize-winning Hackney born playwright, actor and author, who died last week aged 78 after a long battle with cancer.
Pinter widely regarded as one of the greatest post-war playwrights, was born in 1930, the only son of immigrant Jews who ran a tailor's shop in Stoke Newington. He spent his youth growing up in Thistlewaite Road, Lower Clapton - a stone's throw from the old Clapton Cinematograph Theatre, which opened in 1910. It later became the Kenninghall Cinema before shutting in 1979 - and, more recently, was the troubled Palace Pavillion nightspot. The building has stood empty and derelict for two years following Hackney Council's decision to revoke the nightclub's licence. Residents have been campaigning since last year to restore the cinema to its former glory and say it will be a fitting memorial to the acclaimed dramatist, who during a career spanning five decades wrote more than 60 plays and screenplays as well as scripts for cinema and television.
"Pinter plays are rightfully lauded the world over and masterpieces such as The Birthday Party, The Homecoming (which borrows from events in his own Hackney upbringing) and The Caretaker have earned him an important place in world theatre history," said Julie Lafferty, secretary of the Friends of Clapton Cinematograph Theatre. "He was so passionate about cinema and wrote 22 screenplays, including such classic films as The Servant, Accident, The Go-Between and The French Lieutenant's Woman." "What better and more appropriate way to honour his memory and his Hackney roots than to establish a centre for the cinematic arts in the former cinema and providing a lasting tribute to one of Hackney's most famous sons and one of our greatest dramatists and writers," she added.
Pinter's natural intellect as a schoolboy saw him earn a place at the former Grocer's Company's School in Downs Park Road where he was a pupil from 1944 until 1948. The Victorian school building was destroyed by fire in 1963 and in 1966 it became Hackney Downs comprehensive before the government closed it as a failing school in 1995. It is now the site of the Mossbourne Academy. Pinter was inspired to write by his English teacher, Joe Brearley, and his love of drama blossomed in Shakespeare roles which included Macbeth and Romeo. He was also self-taught and spent many hours studying in Hackney Central Library, now the site of the closed Ocean music venue. He was a rebel from an early age, declaring himself a conscientious objector and refusing to do national service. He began his acting career in provincial theatres in 1959 and The Caretaker established him as a commercial and critical success, making him one of Britain's foremost dramatists. He was made a CBE in 1966 and a Companion of Honour in 2002, joining an exclusive order which has only 65 members at any one time. He won many awards for his plays, the greatest of which was the Nobel Prize for Literature, which he received in 2005. He was diagnosed with cancer of the oesophagus in 2002 and underwent a major operation and a course of chemotherapy. A small private funeral attended by just family and close friends was held yesterday (Wednesday).
Calls have been made to resurrect a crumbling former Lower Clapton cinema as a lasting tribute to Harold Pinter, the Nobel Prize-winning Hackney born playwright, actor and author, who died last week aged 78 after a long battle with cancer.
Pinter widely regarded as one of the greatest post-war playwrights, was born in 1930, the only son of immigrant Jews who ran a tailor's shop in Stoke Newington. He spent his youth growing up in Thistlewaite Road, Lower Clapton - a stone's throw from the old Clapton Cinematograph Theatre, which opened in 1910. It later became the Kenninghall Cinema before shutting in 1979 - and, more recently, was the troubled Palace Pavillion nightspot. The building has stood empty and derelict for two years following Hackney Council's decision to revoke the nightclub's licence. Residents have been campaigning since last year to restore the cinema to its former glory and say it will be a fitting memorial to the acclaimed dramatist, who during a career spanning five decades wrote more than 60 plays and screenplays as well as scripts for cinema and television.
"Pinter plays are rightfully lauded the world over and masterpieces such as The Birthday Party, The Homecoming (which borrows from events in his own Hackney upbringing) and The Caretaker have earned him an important place in world theatre history," said Julie Lafferty, secretary of the Friends of Clapton Cinematograph Theatre. "He was so passionate about cinema and wrote 22 screenplays, including such classic films as The Servant, Accident, The Go-Between and The French Lieutenant's Woman." "What better and more appropriate way to honour his memory and his Hackney roots than to establish a centre for the cinematic arts in the former cinema and providing a lasting tribute to one of Hackney's most famous sons and one of our greatest dramatists and writers," she added.
Pinter's natural intellect as a schoolboy saw him earn a place at the former Grocer's Company's School in Downs Park Road where he was a pupil from 1944 until 1948. The Victorian school building was destroyed by fire in 1963 and in 1966 it became Hackney Downs comprehensive before the government closed it as a failing school in 1995. It is now the site of the Mossbourne Academy. Pinter was inspired to write by his English teacher, Joe Brearley, and his love of drama blossomed in Shakespeare roles which included Macbeth and Romeo. He was also self-taught and spent many hours studying in Hackney Central Library, now the site of the closed Ocean music venue. He was a rebel from an early age, declaring himself a conscientious objector and refusing to do national service. He began his acting career in provincial theatres in 1959 and The Caretaker established him as a commercial and critical success, making him one of Britain's foremost dramatists. He was made a CBE in 1966 and a Companion of Honour in 2002, joining an exclusive order which has only 65 members at any one time. He won many awards for his plays, the greatest of which was the Nobel Prize for Literature, which he received in 2005. He was diagnosed with cancer of the oesophagus in 2002 and underwent a major operation and a course of chemotherapy. A small private funeral attended by just family and close friends was held yesterday (Wednesday).
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