UWL awards honorary doctorate to acclaimed actor and director Barrie Rutter OBE
The University of West London (UWL) has awarded Barrie Rutter OBE, the founder and Artistic Director of pioneering theatre company Northern Broadsides, an Honorary Doctor of Letters in recognition of his exceptional contribution to British theatre. The honour was presented during UWL’s graduation ceremonies at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham on Tuesday 21 July.
Dedicated to theatre
Born in Hull, Barrie Rutter began his acting career after leaving school in 1964 and has since become one of the most influential figures in British theatre. While his work has spanned film, television and radio, he is best known for his passion for the stage and for founding Northern Broadsides, a company renowned for its innovative productions and championing of regional voices in classical theatre.
Over the course of his career, Barrie has directed and acted in numerous acclaimed productions, including Richard III, The Cracked Pot, Romeo and Juliet, Antony and Cleopatra, King Lear, Oedipus and Othello. He is best described as a ‘theatre animal’ and has had his happiest moments on the stage.
A distinguished career
Barrie’s theatre work includes Henry IV, Henry V, Coriolanus and the Taming of the Shrew for the Royal Shakespeare Company and The Mysteries, The Crucible, Guys and Dolls, The Oresteia, The Rivals, Animal Farm, Martine and The Trackers of Oxyrhynchus for the Royal National Theatre. He played the title role in Hobson’s Choice at Sheffield’s Crucible Theatre and most recently Jarvis Huntley-Pike in A Chorus of Disapproval at the Harold Pinter Theatre.
In 2008 Barrie directed and played the title role in the premiere of Jack Lear by Ben Benison at the Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough and directed The Tempest for THOC Cyprus Theatre Organisation. In 2009 he directed Richard III in Estonia for Theatre Vanemuine, Tarfu, Estonia. In recognition of his outstanding services to drama, Barrie was awarded an OBE in the 2015 New Years Honours.
A transformative influence
Introducing Barrie at the graduation ceremony, Emma Lucia Hands, Director of Drama Studio London, part of UWL, said:
“Barrie Rutter’s exceptional achievement, and his gift to British theatre, is that he put the Northern voice at the very heart of Shakespeare performance – liberating actors like Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart to use their own native voices on stage, from the gut and from the heart, which is, after all, where Shakespeare actually resides.
“I am thrilled that UWL can honour Barrie today for his exceptional contribution to the creative excellence and vocal diversity of the British theatre industry.”
Advice for the next generation
Barrie encouraged the graduands to embrace their creativity and individuality. He said:
“For all of you joining the arts today, if there’s a better word than artist to describe us I have yet to hear it. Count yourselves artists. Always be alive to the imagination, to impulses, stimuli. Also, it’s very important in the arts to retain the right sort of bloody-mindedness.”
He also highlighted the value of curiosity and lifelong learning:
“I wish you joy untrammelled in your professions to come. I wish you good reading. If you read, you never need be lonely and you’re better armed to fend off the book burners out there. I hope, like me, your job can be your hobby.”
