Much Ado About Dying (15) with Director Q&A

Dir. Simon Chambers | 2022 | 84 mins plus Q&A | English 

It begins with a voicemail: ‘I think I may be dying’. Long-retired actor David Newlyn Gale, isn’t quite at death’s door, but his health has deteriorated in recent years. He lives in an unsuitable flat, sustaining himself on cans of soup, keeping himself warm with a small army of electric heaters and battling a mice infestation with toothpaste.

It soon becomes clear that his greatest sources of nourishment are literature and theatre. And he sees in his nephew, who is also gay, a like-minded creative soul. Between the Shakespearean monologues, Much Ado About Dying presents an intimate, occasionally funny and ultimately moving portrait of a solitary life and a quietly critical assessment of the inadequate resources available in the UK for a rapidly ageing population.

About Director Simon Chambers:

Simon taught disadvantaged teenagers in London for 14 years before turning his hand to films. In 2006, with his first feature ‘Every Good Marriage Begins With Tears’, he realised that he had a knack for making the kind of documentaries that people want to watch. ‘Every Good Marriage’ was shown on BBC Storyville, and on TV in around 30 countries. 

In 2009 he completed feature length documentary ‘Cowboys in India’ which has also won several prizes and has shown on TV in UK, USA and India. In 2010 he moved to New Delhi where he taught at an Islamic university. In 2015 he moved back to London to become the carer for his uncle, David Newlyn Gale, a retired gay actor who was living in squalor and needed support. When Uncle David died in 2020 Simon decided to make a film from the footage they had shot together.

Wednesday 5th June, 7.30pm

Tickets: £9.00/£7.50/£7.00

A £1 Poly Fund payment is added to each ticket sold.