Future
events
celebrating
Linda's life
Celebrating Linda Smith
The Spring Tour 2008
Lakin Productions in association with The Friends Of Linda Smith presents, Celebrating Linda Smith; Supporting Ovarian cancer action touring England and Wales.
Spring 2008 performance dates confirmed so far:
March 2008
March 6 - Wavendon Stables Theatre, Milton Keynes – musical guest Barb Jungr
Box Office 01908 280800 Web www.stables.org
March 7 – Arts Centre, Colchester - musical guest Barb Jungr
Box Office 01206 500900 Web www.colchesterartscentre.com
March 8 - The Playhouse, Norwich - musical guest Carol Grimes
Box Office 01603 598598 Web www.norwichplayhouse.org.uk
March 9 – The Purcell Room, South Bank Centre, London - musical guest
Carol Grimes + comedy from Hattie Hayridge + readings from
Charlotte Green & Corrie Corfield
Box Office 0871 6632509 Web www.southbankcentre.co.uk
March 12 - Clair Hall, Haywards Heath - musical guest Barb Jungr
Box Office 01444 455440 Web www.olymposcentres.com
March 13 - Weston Studio, Millennium Centre, Cardiff - musical guest Barb Jungr
Box Office 08700 40 2000 Web www.wmc.org.uk
March 14 - Plough Arts Centre, Gt.Torrington, Devon - musical guest Barb Jungr
Box Office 01805 624624 Web www.plough-arts.org
March 18 - The Riverhead Theatre, Louth - musical guest Barb Jungr
Box Office 01507 600350 Web www.louthplaygoers.co.uk
March 20 - The Met Arts Centre, Bury, Lancs - musical guest Carol Grimes
Box Office 0161 761 2216 Web www.themet.biz
April 2008
April 1 - Crucible Theatre Studio, Sheffield - musical guest Sandi Russell
April 2 - Crucible Theatre Studio, Sheffield - musical guest Barb Jungr
April 3 - Crucible Theatre Studio, Sheffield - musical guest Barb Jungr
April 4 - Crucible Theatre Studio, Sheffield - musical guest Carol Grimes
April 5 - Crucible Theatre Studio, Sheffield - musical guest Barb Jungr
Box Office 0114 249 6000 Web www.sheffieldtheatres.co.uk
April 12 - Stratford Circus, London East - musical guest Barb Jungr + comedy from Arnold Brown Box Office 020 8279 1015 Web www.stratford-circus.com
April 13 – Hull Truck Theatre, Hull - musical guest Sandi Russell
Box Office 01482 323638 Web www.hulltruck.co.uk
April 16 - The Theatre, Chipping Norton - musical guest Barb Jungr
Box Office 01608 642350 Web www.chippingnortontheatre.co.uk
April 17 - Arts Centre, Swindon - musical guest Barb Jungr
Box Office 01793 614837 Web www.swindon.gov.uk/artscentre
April 18 - Theatre Royal, Winchester - musical guest Carol Grimes
Box Office 01962 840440 Web www.theatre-royal-winchester.co.uk
April 19 - Huntingdon Hall, Worcester - musical guest Carol Grimes
Box Office 01905 611427 Web www.worcesterlive.co.uk
April 24 - Gala Theatre. Durham - musical guest Sandi Russell
Box Office 0191 332 4041 Web www.galadurham.co.uk
April 25 – The Y Theatre, Leicester - musical guest Carol Grimes
Box Office 0116 2557066 Web www.leicesterymca.co.uk
April 29 - Middlesbrough Theatre, Teesside - musical guest Sandi Russell
Box Office 01642 815181 Web www.middlesbrough.gov.uk
May 2008
May 1 - The Picture House, Hebden Bridge - musical guest Barb Jungr
Box Office 01422 842684 Web www.hebdenbridge.co.uk/festival
May 3 - The Library Theatre, Manchester - musical guest Barb Jungr
Box Office 0161 236 7110 Web www.librarytheatre.com
May 8 – Norden Farm Arts Centre, Maidenhead - musical guest Carol Grimes
Box Office 01628 788997 Web www.nordenfarm.org
May 9 – Sallis Benney Theatre, Brighton (Festival) x (2 performances) – Carol Grimes
Box Office 01273 709709 Web www.brightonfestival.org
May 10 – Gulbenkian Theatre, Canterbury - musical guest Carol Grimes
Box Office 01227 769075 Web www.gulbenkiantheatre.co.uk
Fellow professional performers will be paying tribute to Linda Smith in a brand new stage production which reunites Linda’s comic genius with her audiences.
A national tour marking Linda’s outstanding contribution to the world of comedy is designed to coincide with the annual campaign to raise awareness of Ovarian Cancer and to raise funds for crucial clinical research in to the disease. In a full two hour show, actors, musicians and comedians will take audiences on a beautifully crafted journey through Linda’s life story in an adaptation of her biography ‘Driving Miss Smith’, published in November 2007 by Hodder and Stoughton. Written by her partner of 23 years, Warren Lakin, the book is a perfect accompaniment to ‘I Think The Nurses Are Stealing My Clothes’ an hilarious anthology of Linda’s best comedy work edited by Warren Lakin and first published in November 2006 (in paperback October 2007).
The stage show is directed and narrated by two of Linda’s closest theatrical friends from her days in Sheffield, Kate Rutter and Mike McCarthy, with Warren Lakin in a supporting role. Linda spent 14 years in the city, graduating from the University of Sheffield before going on to co-found the ground breaking Sheffield Popular Theatre, directing the legendary Chuffinelles and compering the Route 52 cabaret club at Crookes.
Each performance will feature musical contributions from friends such as award-winning singer songwriters Barb Jungr, Ian Shaw and Sandi Russell plus guest spots from top TV and stage actors and comedians led by Gwyneth Strong, best known as Cassandra from ‘Only Fools and Horses’. Aside from a lively narrative, performers will be giving renditions of Linda’s fantastically funny material drawn from across her professional stage, radio and TV career which spanned 1983 to 2006. The show features carefully selected cuts of Linda’s comedy in audio and visual clips from shows such as ‘News Quiz’; ‘Just A Minute’; ‘I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue’; ‘A Brief History of Time Wasting’; ‘Have I Got News For You’; ‘Room 101’.
A donation will be made to Ovarian cancer action from every ticket sold at each venue. For information about the charity visit www.ovarian.org.uk
“One of the smartest, funniest, and most sweet-natured people I ever encountered.” Stephen Fry
“I thought for a long time she was my secret. The room always warmed up when she came on the air. How to be a funny woman without bearing talons; tune in to Linda Smith and learn.” Maureen Lipman
“The funniest woman I’ve met.” Sandi Toksvig
“Linda was simply one of the funniest people in Britain, thoughtful, provocative, casually brilliant one-liners.” Stephanie Merritt, The Observer
Past events
Linda Smith's Favourite Things (2)
Victoria Palace, London. Sunday 28th October 2007
Victoria Palace Theatre, Victoria Street, London
 Performers included: Jo Brand, Dara O’Briain, Jeremy Hardy, Bill Wyman and His Rhythm Kings, John Hegley and The Popticians, Maureen Lipman, Tom Robinson, Kevin Eldon, Simon Munnery, John Shuttleworth, Chris Neill, Jenni Murray, Lemn Sissay, Carol Grimes Band, Ronnie And The Rex, Gurpreet Bhatti, Femi Elofowuju Jnr, Kate Rutter.
This evening combined the launch of Linda's biography 'Driving Miss Smith' (written by Warren Lakin and published by Hodder and Stoughton) with a fundraising concert in Linda's name for Ovarian cancer action (Oca). A percentage of author’s royalties from the sales of this book will go to Oca - website http://www.ovarian.org.uk
This occasion presented a high profile two-in-one opportunity to raise awareness about ovarian cancer through the publicity generated around both the concert and the book, and to raise funds for Oca. The content and the line-up of the 'Linda Smith’s Favourite Things' show reflected some of Linda's favourite comedians, comedy sketches, music and musicians as portrayed in the new book; plus renditions by guest performers of Linda’s own comic material from the first book, 'I Think The Nurses Are Stealing My Clothes'.
Chortle Comedy
March 2007
Warren went along to The Chortle Comedy Awards in Soho, London, to collect a posthumous award for Linda in recognition of her Outstanding Contribution to Comedy. The ceremony was hosted by Dara O’Briain and the award was handed over by close friend Jeremy Hardy.
Radio Academy Hall of Fame
December 2006
2006 ended on a high when Warren was invited to attend the annual patrons’ lunch of The Radio Academy at the Savoy Hotel as a guest of Mark Damazer, controller of BBC Radio 4.
He was a genial host to a group of Linda's comedy friends and Linda's sister Barbara Giles. The reason for being at this prestigious gathering was for Linda to be posthumously inducted in to the Radio Hall of Fame, along with her comedy heroines Hattie Jacques and Betty Marsden. Previous inductees included Spike Milligan and The Goons. Warren was called upon to make an acceptance speech and collect an inscribed Dartington glass bowl in the presence of an audience of her peers.
Publication of I
think the Nurses are Stealing My Clothes
6th
november 2006
There were several
launch events, click
here for details.
I
think the nurses are stealing my
clothes: LONDON LAUNCH
The Drill Hall, London. 30th
October 2006
A
ticketed audience for 200 seats – proceeds
going to Ovarian
Cancer Action. Extracts from
the book performed by 30
comedians.
Featuring:
The
Bettertones,
Gurpreet Bhatti,
Bob Boyton ,
Jo Brand ,
Stephanie Calman,
Dave Cohen
Corrie Corfield, Barry Cryer,
Ivor Dembina, Peter Donaldson,
Femi Elufowoju Jr., Ronnie
Golden, Charlotte Green,
Steve Gribbin, Andy Hamilton,
Barb Jungr, Phill Jupitus, Jenny
Lecoat, Sean
Lock, Brian Mulligan,
Chris
Neill, Nicholas
Parsons, Brian
Perkins,
Eve Polycarpou, Ian
Saville, John
Sergeant, Ian Shaw,
Arthur Smith,
Mark Steel,
Liz Stephens,
Sandi
Toksvig.
Fantastic
Gala Evening – hosted by Fred
Macaulay
Music Hall Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh. 22nd August 2006
Featuring:
Jeff Green,
John Hegley, Hattie Hayridge, Lucy
Porter, Mrs Barbara Nice, Adam Hills,
Tim Clark, Count Arthur Strong,
Ronnie
Golden, Chris Neill and Liz Stephens.
Beneficiaries
from the proceeds of the Sheffield
Lyceum, the Victoria Palace and Edinburgh
events included The
British Humanist Association – www.humanism.org.uk, Macmillan
Cancer Support – www.macmillan.org.uk and Marie
Curie Cancer Care – www.mariecurie.org.uk.
Tippy
Top - An Evening of Linda’s
Favourite Things
Victoria Palace Theatre, London. Sunday 4th June 2006
Thanks to
Jo Brand our compere
 Thanks also to
Sandi Russell
and Trio,
Arthur Smith,
Just A Minute featuring Nicholas Parsons, Paul Merton,
and Jeremy Hardy also Liza Tarbuck
and Chris Neill
Steve Gribbin – Brian Mulligan
– Richard Morton
Mark Thomas
The News Quiz featuring Andy Hamilton, Sandi Toksvig,
Phill Jupitus, Jeremy Hardy and Simon
Hoggart plus Corrie Corfield, Peter
Donaldson, Charlotte Green, Brian
Perkins
I’m Sorry
I Haven’t A Clue featuring
Humphrey Lyttelton and
Barry Cryer, Jeremy Hardy, Tim Brooke-Taylor
and Graeme Garden
Mark Steel
Hattie Hayridge
Warren Lakin
The Blockheads featuring Phill Jupitus
In
Praise of an English Radical - A Celebration
of Linda Smith
The Lyceum Theatre, Sheffield. Sunday 14th May 2006
Appearing were:
Mike
McCarthy and Kate
Rutter – the comperes
Also:
Margaret
Barraclough, Denise Fitzpatrick, Ann
Lavelle, Rachel Van Riel
Rony Robinson,
John Hegley,
Sandi Russell and Duo,
Roger Monkhouse,
Betty Spital,
The Mysterons featuring Deborah Egan
and Jane McCauley,
Don Valley and The Rotherhides,
The Chuffinelles featuring Margaret
Barraclough,
Joy Skelton, Sylvia Jones,
Chris Percival,
Steve Gribbin and
Brian Mulligan,
Jeremy Hardy, Warren
Lakin
A
Celebration of the Life of Linda Smith
Theatre Royal, Stratford. 10th March 2006
Linda had died on
27th February 2006. There was such
an outpouring of love, sorrow and
affection that we felt it was very
important to give those who were close
or knew her to have an opportunity
to mark her passing. Although in essence
it was a private function the 450
seat Theatre Royal Stratford East
London was filled to capacity. We
tried to capture the different eras
of her life and her different professional
worlds in an event that was at once
solemn and very funny.
 Contributions
included
BBC Symphony
String Orchestra
Mark Steel
Caroline Black, the Officiant from
the British Humanist Association
(BHA) and
Hanne Stinson, Executive Director
BHA
Jeremy Hardy
Live music by Richard Morton, Steve
Gribbin, Ronnie Golden, Bill Bailey,
Kevin Eldon and John Hegley
The Erith Years - with Brian Shade
The Sheffield Years - with Ann Lavelle,
Stephen Daldry, Mike McCarthy and
Jane Baker
Henry Normal
Mark Thomas
Mark Damazer
Laurie Taylor
Radio Clips introduced by Andy Hamilton
Emails from the public read by Chris
Neil, Hattie Hayridge, Jo Brand and
Arthur Smith
Readings by friends Chris Meade, Debra
Reay, Karen Merkel and Graham Downes
Sandi Russell
TV clips introduced by Paul Merton
Live music from Barry Cryer and Ronnie
Golden
Words from Warren Lakin her partner
And a final CD, Joy Divison's Love
Will Tear Us Apart |
