Interview: Ronald Pickup
Ronald Pickup was born in Chester (recently received an Honorary degree from the University of Chester), and trained at RADA. Pickup is a highly acclaimed film, television and stage actor, seen recently on our small screens in Lark Rise to Candleford, Holby City, Coronation Street and Foyle’s War. He has featured in many films, from The Day of the Jackal in the 1970’s, or The Mission in the 1980’s to the Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, and the recent sequel. He has played Orwell in Orwell on Jura, and other historical characters including Verdi, Nietzsche and Stravinsky. In theatre, Ronald worked with Laurence Olivier at the National Theatre and has appeared in many of our major theatres and roles. He is here today because of his work with Beckett, starting with his role as Man in Play at the Royal Court Theatre in 1976, dir by Ronald McWhinnie, where he first met Beckett. He was chosen to work with Beckett and Billie Whitelaw in the BBC version of Beckett’s haunting tv play,Ghost Trio, screened as Shades with Not I, and …but the clouds… on the Lively Arts programme in 1977. Most recently, he played Lucky alongside Ian McKellen, Patrick Stewart and Simon Callow in Waiting for Godot, directed by Sean Mathias, at the Haymarket, 2009.
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