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Lenny Henry in Conversation

'Who Am I?' Book Tour

By Q-ell BettonPublished 4 years ago 4 min read
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Now an elder statesmen of the British comedy establishment, Sir Lenny Henry held court, ably assisted, cajoled and questioned by Romesh Ranganathan, on a wet and rainy Monday evening at the Royal Festival Hall In Southbank, speaking about his career, the entertainment industry and his book, Who Am I?, that chronicles his early showbiz years.

The talk begun promptly at 7:30 and after a brief introduction from one of the Southbank’s hosts promoting upcoming literary events, Sir Henry came on and read an excerpt from his book. Having purchased the tickets way back in July, on a whim, I was not sure what to expect and must admit that my heart sank as Sir Lenny stood behind the lectern reading.

He wasn’t going to read from his book was he? Though the book is, no doubt, well written and an amusing and engaging read, if I had wanted to hear the great man read, I would have downloaded the book on Audible.

Thankfully, the reading was just an introductory punctuation to proceedings and Henry then gave a warm and thankful introduction to Ranganathan, who joined him on the stage. With the obvious affection and respect between the two comedians apparent, Romesh expertly directed the conversation, keeping it flowing and gently bringing Sir Lenny back to his book whenever he strayed.

Considering the talk was, in essence, to promote Henry’s book, which, as I alluded to earlier, chronicles his early life and forays into comedy up to the age of 22, Henry spoke at length about other aspects of his life. He spoke about representation within the entertainment industry, especially for minorities.

He was very clear in his vision, speaking not so much about the visible representation but the behind the scenes, the decision makers, the creators. He spoke with understandable pride about the inception of Comic Relief and its ongoing impact. He spoke of his trepidation when taking on Othello and of things he has learned in his four decades in the industry.

Referencing his book, with some prompting from Romesh, he spoke of the great influence his mother had on him and her strength of character and how she had been the funny one in the family. He discovered his own talent for comedy at school, using humour to deter a persistent bully who he would encounter on a daily basis.

He spoke with pride about making his family laugh the night he came back from an audition and his mother, having asked him where he had been, made him repeat his act on the doorstep of their home.

For people of West Indian descent, a lot of his comedy and recollections were laugh-out-loud funny, recognisable from our own lives and experiences. He spoke about the living room that nobody ever went into, not something so common with the other islands but for those who had Jamaican friends—literally every black person who grew up in the 70s and 80s—it was a hilarious reminiscence.

He touched on the racism he faced but not in a victimised way, even though him having been a black person growing up in the north of England in the seventies, racism would have been rife.

He recalled how from one day to the next, when he was around eight years old, his white neighbour who had been a playmate and he thought friend merely days before, had spat at him through the letterbox and called him a ‘coon.’

Though he diffused the tension and the harshness of the incident with humour, saying how if he met him now he would hug him tight and "spit in his ear so hard it would come out of the other side!" It was still a poignant tale of an incident that happened over half a century ago.

The majority of the crowd in attendance in an, unfortunately, only sixty percent full hall, were probably in the thirties to sixties age range, Henry’s humour and influence crossing nearly three generations. As the talk was drawing towards its conclusion, Romesh opened up to the audience, inviting questions. A young woman, who looked to be in her mid-twenties, approached the microphone.

She was a visitor from Columbia and had taken a picture of the poster promoting Henry’s talk and asked an English friend if she should go. Her friend had encouraged her to attend. She said she was so happy that she had such was the impact of his talk.

For myself, attending such an event on a whim and seeing a person whom I admired and had watched growing up was particularly enjoyable. With Sir Henry laying bare his real persona, I came away impressed by his demeanour, dignity and passion, even after so many years in the industry. A highly inspirational evening.

comedy
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About the Creator

Q-ell Betton

I write stuff. A lot.

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