Tate St Ives is delighted to announce an evening with acclaimed British actor Dudley Sutton. Known for his work in film, theatre and television, Dudley offers a personal journey through the world of art and life in performance, via verse, prose and song, inspired by the current exhibition of work by Rose Hilton and the South West.

Born in 1933, Dudley has been acting since the 1950s, his roles covering kitchen sink drama to Shakespeare to daytime television soap operas – and everything in between, although for anyone who can remember the 1980s he will be best remembered for his unforgettable character ‘Tinker’ on TV’s Lovejoy. A frequent visitor to Cornwall, many of these pieces were composed on the cliffs of Botallack, just this side of CapeCornwall. 

Dudley’s unpredictable evening consists entirely of his own material; ‘I only ever have a vague idea of the theme linking these performances. Sometimes drawn from recent experience, sometimes even from the journey (in this case) down to Cornwall, though this time I suspect I will talk a little about my relationship with local artists, and even Falmouth College. Who knows?’

Not simply an actor, Dudley has been writing poetry since the 1980s. Showcasing his Performance Pieces - all of which are in verse, some accompanied by guitar, with even a couple of songs and Talking Blues, a format of which he is particularly fond, the pieces are linked by remarks or stories or rants or experiences, depending on the audience and the situation of the particular show.

Watch out for; The great love that an unfortunate man has for his shoes, How a Cornish fisherman's wife inadvertently saves the life of her husband, The way in which a student hopes to justify a life of laying about in Paris in the fifties, A sad song of disappearing public conveniences, and, specifically for Tate St Ives, The History of the Nine Lives Of Tommy the Tomcat of St Ives.

For tickets please call: 01736 792662, email: visiting.stives@tate.org.uk,

website: www.tate.org.uk/stives

For further press information, please contact Arwen Fitch, tel: 01736 792185,

email: arwen.fitch@tate.org.uk