Episode Three – George Hall in Conversation with Belinda Lang

George Hall at 100 is a special series celebrating the life and career of one of the most important, influential and inspirational acting teachers in the history of British theatre.

To mark George’s 100th birthday on February 5th 2025, his friends recorded new, fascinating and often very funny conversations with him, resulting in five episodes full of star names and fabulous anecdotes.

In episode two, Sir Tony Robinson, who left the Central School of Speech and Drama in 1966, chats with George about his early life: growing up in Edinburgh, his school days, earliest theatre memories and his wartime service in the RAF.

George began watching music hall and theatre productions in the 1930s, was patted on the head as a child by Rachmaninoff, became an expert morse code telegraphist in Blackpool’s Empress Ballroom during World War 2 and attended the Old Vic School in 1949, alongside Dame Joan Plowright and Prunella Scales.

During his subsequent eight-decade career, he has also been an actor, cabaret artist, television music director, voice coach, writer, theatre director, music hall performer, international lecturer and a composer of film and TV scores. He even wrote a song with Clive Dunn that was produced by George Martin and then banned by the BBC!

George was Director of the legendary acting course at Central for nearly a quarter of a century, taught at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama for another 22 years, Yale University for over a decade and is still teaching the history of musical theatre at the Royal Academy of Music after more than 30 years.

George reflects on being trained by Michel Saint-Denis, George Devine and Glen Byam Shaw at the Old Vic School, looks back on his short-lived music hall act Country Cousins, and with the assistance of documents from the BBC’s Written Archive Centre, recalls his busy and varied BBC career in the 1950s, often working with the director Michael Elliot.

And he tells Tony about the unusual circumstances that led to his appointment at Central in 1964 and the enormous influence on his life of the Austrian-born movement teacher, Litz Pisk.

Sara Kestelman, David Horovitch and David Robb will also share their recollections of studying under George at Central during the 1960s. You'll hear from Priscilla Morgan who performed with him in the early '50s and Amanda Barrie who worked with George on the BBC TV series On The Bright Side with Stanley Baxter and Betty Marsden.

Neil Pearson, Leonie Mellinger, Belinda Lang, Nickolas Grace and Nigel Lilley have also had long conversations with George for the other four episodes in this podcast series, when you'll hear from the likes of Michael Grandage, Freddie Fox, Kevin Whately, Lindsay Duncan, Rufus Sewell, James Purefoy, Peter Chelsom, Harriet Thorpe, Christopher Eccleston, James Nesbitt Zoe Wanamaker, Tessa Peake-Jones, Janet Ellis, Peter Davison, Fern Britton, Peter Guinness, Tom Read Wilson, Lalla Ward, Wendy Allnutt and Johanna Adams Farley.

George Hall at 100 is produced by Square Elephant Productions with Danny Garlick. The series has been generously supported by Steve Moreschi whose great uncles, the theatrical agents Sonny and Hyman Zahl, worked with George in the 1950s.

For more information please contact [email protected]

Or follow the show on Instagram @GeorgeHallat100

Music by ⁠Maksym Malko⁠ from ⁠Pixabay