• YOUR correspondent Wilson John Haire wrote “I hope we are not the only survivors of Unity Theatre”, referring to himself and Harry Landis, (Unity Theatre will never be forgotten, September 23).

They are not! In the early 1990s Camden Council and the Unity Theatre Trust gave grants to sponsor the revival of Unity Theatre. With their help the group involved in supporting this revival acquired a performing space.

This venue was a vacant public house in Hampstead Road, The Lord Palmerston, which is now The Camden People’s Theatre. Sadly, Unity’s original venue in Mornington Crescent had burned down.

The first production for the return of Unity was Sean O’Casey’s Red Roses for Me and was directed by the well-known Irish character actor (Jabba the Hutt in Star Wars) Declan Mulholland and it introduced the now-famous actress Sharon Horgan.

In fact this was her introduction to the semi-professional fringe theatre (after previously working in a London Jobcentre for a number of years).

Sharon also appeared at the venue in Horseman Pass By by Daniel Magee, directed by the late, former Royal Court director and Welsh Opera director Michael Geliot.

Bob Hoskins began working in the original Unity Theatre when it was in its home based in Mornington Crescent. He also wrote plays for Unity – one called All For The Nation.

Bob allowed us to perform the piece and waived the royalties. Jack O’Connor directed this very successful play for the revived Unity Theatre after which he took it to the Thorndike Theatre in Leatherhead and to the Samuel Beckett Theatre in Dublin with the now well-known TV star Simon Farnaby of Ghosts in the lead.

Other productions included a little-known George Bernard Shaw – Press Cuttings – starring the actor Clive Greenwood.

However our open policy of introducing young actors created our downfall. A group of physical theatre aspiring actors (physical theatre being very popular in the 1990s), somewhat anarchist “entryists”, managed to take over the venue in Hampstead Road and Unity was usurped.

Unity continued to perform at venues, including the Red Rose Comedy Club in Seven Sisters Road and the West London Trade Union Club. The revival of the theatre was no longer possible.

However the dedicated actors went on to mount a number of plays, including Ay Carmela by José Sinisterra, Harold Pinter’s The Room, The Dumb Waiter and other works, Marx by Ron Blair with Mark Shaer in the role of Karl Marx, as well as a number of plays by Bernard Shaw.

MAUREEN COMAN
Secretary, Unity Theatre & former Vice-Chair of Unity Theatre Trust

JACK O’CONNOR
Director, Sturdy Beggars Group Theatre 

MARK SHAER
Artistic Director, West London Trade Union Club