Mother’s death prompted Sir Lenny Henry’s move towards Shakespeare

Sir Lenny Henry has revealed the death of his mother was the turning point that encouraged him to go back to school and fall in love with Shakespeare.

After being honoured with a special award at the 2016 Baftas, the actor and presenter shared the stories that led to his success in a documentary Sir Lenny Henry: A Life On Screen.

Describing his mother’s death in 1998, the 58-yearold said: “It was like somebody had pulled the rug away from your entire world and so I was just a bit off piste think- 0 Viewers will learn about Henry’s family and career ing ‘what am I gonna do?’ And I decided to go back to school.”

Sir Lenny achieved a BA Hons degree in English Literature through an Open University course, although he did not enjoy studying Shakespeare and had to force himself to listen to the plays on his daily commute between London and Reading.

But it was not until he described Shakespeare as a “middle class, Oxbridge thing” on the radio that his mind was changed by actor Barry Rutter. Rutter told him: “I’m the son of a working class fisherman, your dad worked in a factory, we’re both working class lads – Shakespeare is for us as well as them.”

The documentary celebrates Sir Lenny’s career and sees him open up about his family, which he touched on in his semi-autobiographical film Danny And The Human Zoo.