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Jonathon Morris, best known as Adrian Boswell in the hit TV series
Bread, is back in Bournemouth - more than 10 years after turning down
the chance to do a summer season here. As he rehearsed for his role in
Beside the Seaside at the Pier Theatre, he revealed why he didn't join
the rest of the Bread cast for the Pavilion stage show back in 1991. And
he spoke of his passion for theatre and his belief that Ian Dickens'
comedy season will bring a change of fortune to the pier. After recording the last of nine series of Bread for the BBC, Jonathon went straight into The Rocky Horror Show. "I got a lot of stick for not doing Bread the stage show. Everyone said I was stuck up, but I never agreed to do it." he told me. "I don't believe in adaptations of TV series work very well. You sometimes have to divorce TV from theatre. I really believe that. It takes an awful lot of technique and passion and is very different to animal to TV. First and foremost I'm a theatre performer - that's what I trained in." But he readily admits that bread has made him saleable over the years. Since Bread he has worked extensively in stage plays, musicals, pantomimes, TV and film. "You need to do everything to enjoy longevity," he says. "This is my sixth play for Ian Dickens in the last three years and I will have done four this year. He is a very good director/producer. He's shown a great deal of faith in me and I have a great deal of faith in him. He is hungry for success and wants success for Bournemouth and the Pier theatre. I'm inspired by being in his company. The group of actors working for Ian have a team ethic that no one actor is better than any other. We all want to put the ball in the back of the net" |
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Jonathon was horrified that Bournemouth had come close to losing the
Pier Theatre as councillors voted by a narrow margin to reject a scheme
that would have involved changing it to a casino. "It's crazy!
Everything is about money and there is no reason why the theatre cannot
do what the cinema did 15 years ago and reinvent itself and find new
confidence and faith. My life is about passion and if I can bring that
to the pier and carry on the tradition of excellence it will be
wonderful. This is the first time Ian has brought such a comedy season
to Bournemouth and I hope it will be the beginning of many more for him.
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| Hilary Porter | |
