The Haslemere Thespians are delighted to bring their production of The King’s Speech to the stage.
This play, the story of how King George VI overcame his fear of public speaking through the help of Australian speech therapist Lionel Logue, was made into a highly successful film which won three Academy Awards and seven BAFTAs.
The problem first became public knowledge on the last day of October 1925, when the then Prince Albert, Duke of York, 29 years old and the second son of King George V, made his first broadcast speech.
The occasion was the closing ceremony of the Empire Exhibition at the Empire - later renamed Wembley - Stadium. The Duke spoke into a microphone before a crowd of 100,000, but what often happened in private now occurred in public: his words came haltingly, and he was acutely embarrassed.
As the clouds of war gathered over Europe, Britain itself was in turmoil, with the death of one king followed by the unprecedented abdication of the next only months later.
Unwillingly thrust into the limelight, the shy and reserved Duke of York faced the daunting prospect of becoming a wartime king. But how could a man who could barely speak provide the leadership his country so desperately needed?
Performances of The King’s Speech will be at 7.30pm on May 16, 17 and 18 in Haslemere Hall. For tickets call the box office on 01428 642161 or follow the link https://tickets.haslemerehall.co.uk/sales/genres/theatre/the-kings-speech