Norman Wisdom dominated British film and theatre during the 1950s, playing to packed audiences across the country. For more than six decades Norman’s warmth and boundless energy won the hearts of millions. His cloth cap, ill-fitting suit and classic underdog character led Charlie Chaplin to describe him as his ‘favourite clown’. Norman Wisdom now returns to the stage in Jack Lane’s Wisdom of a Fool, a one-man play, currently on UK tour.
In Wisdom of a Fool, Jack Lane takes you behind Norman Wisdom’s well-known character to reveal a tough and lonely childhood. After joining the Army, Wisdom discovers a passion for comedy; and the world of post-war Music Hall and Variety embraces Norman’s manic slapstick routine, catapulting him to stardom in the early 1950s. Success on the silver screen, including the hit song, ‘Don’t Laugh at Me’, seals his fame. But fame comes at a price… Jack plays 30 characters throughout this tour de force performance. The Gump costume that features in the play belonged to Norman and has been generously loaned to the production by his son and daughter, Nicholas and Jacqueline Wisdom.
LOST Theatre are also proud to present, with the BFI, a long-thought “lost” episode of Norman Wisdom’s variety show before the Saturday matinee of Wisdom of a Fool, introduced by Richard Dacre and followed by a Q and A with Dacre and Jack Lane.
Wisdom of a Fool is at LOST Theatre March 8th 2017 – March 11th 2017, tickets are available here.
