Gielgud: Scenes from Nine Decades
From the stage of the Old Vic Theatre , where he first walked on in 1921, one of Britain's greatest actors Sir John Gielgud reflects on a career that has spanned over seven decades.
Shown to coincide with Gielgud's 90th birthday this week, the programme, narrated by Kenneth Branagh , includes footage of his key performances as well as past interviews with him where he discussed his work, his life and his world. It also gives an insight into the actor and the man through the views of colleagues such as Sir Peter Hall , who reveals that he sometimes thinks of Gielgud as a "terrible old rascal sitting in the rehearsal room doing The Times crossword with an enormous fag ash hanging out of his mouth!" and Sir Alec Guinness who describes Gielgud's voice as "like silver trumpets muffled in silk".
From mainstream Hollywood to avant garde theatre,
Gielgud's appetite for work seems insatiable - in fact, while filming this documentary, he also recorded a radio version of King Lear (heard on Sunday on Radio 3), a television play and a cameo in the new sequel to Gone with the Wind.
Producers Charles Chabot and Ann Hummel
Series editor Nigel Williams
Andrew Duncan interview with Sir John Gielgud
See Feature page 28