Editing Alan Bennett

{{Short description|English actor and playwright (born 1934)}}
{{Other people|Alan Bennett}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2011}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Infobox person
| name         = Alan Bennett
| image        = Alan Bennett 22 Allan Warren.jpg
| caption      = Bennett in 1973; photographed by [[Allan Warren]]
| birth_date   = {{Birth date and age|1934|5|9|df=yes}}
| birth_place  = [[Armley]], [[Leeds]], Yorkshire, England
| partner      = Rupert Thomas
| alma_mater   = [[Exeter College, Oxford]]
| occupation   = {{hlist|Actor|author|playwright|screenwriter}}
| years_active = 1960–present
}}
'''Alan Bennett''' (born 9 May 1934) is an English actor, author, playwright and screenwriter. He has received numerous [[List of awards and nominations received by Alan Bennett|awards and honours]] including four [[BAFTA Awards]], four [[Laurence Olivier Awards]], and two [[Tony Awards]]. In 2005 he received the [[Society of London Theatre Special Award]].

Bennett was born in [[Leeds]] and attended [[Oxford University]]. He taught [[medieval history]] at the university for several years. His work in the satirical revue ''[[Beyond the Fringe]]'' at the 1960 [[Edinburgh Festival]] brought him instant fame and later a [[Special Tony Award]]. He turned to writing full time and gained acclaim with his plays at the [[Royal National Theatre]]. The following plays were  adapted into films: ''[[The Madness of King George]]'' (1994), ''[[The History Boys (film)|The History Boys]]'' (2005), and ''[[The Lady in the Van]]'' (2015).

==Early life==
Bennett was born on 9 May 1934 in [[Armley]], [[Leeds]], West Riding of Yorkshire.<ref name = "LRB article">{{Cite journal |last = Bennett |first = Alan |year = 2014 |title = Fair Play |url = http://www.lrb.co.uk/v36/n12/alan-bennett/fair-play |journal = [[London Review of Books]] |volume = 36 |issue = 12 |pages = 29–30 |access-date = 13 June 2014 }}</ref> The younger son of a [[The Co-operative Group|Co-op]] butcher, Walter, and his wife, Lilian Mary (née Peel), Bennett attended Christ Church, Upper Armley, Church of England School (in the same class as [[Barbara Taylor Bradford]]), and then [[Leeds Modern School]] (now [[Lawnswood School]]). He has an older brother.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Alan Bennett: 'I don't fret about posterity. But some things will last' {{!}} Alan Bennett  |url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2016/dec/18/alan-bennett-i-dont-fret-about-posterity-interview|access-date=12 February 2022|website=The Guardian}}</ref>

Bennett learned Russian at the [[Joint Services School for Linguists]] during his [[Conscription in the United Kingdom|national service]] before applying for a [[Scholarship level|scholarship]] at Oxford University. He was accepted by [[Exeter College, Oxford]], and graduated with a [[British degree classification|first-class]] degree in history. While at Oxford he performed comedy with a number of eventually successful actors in the [[Oxford Revue]]. He remained at the university for several years, working as a junior lecturer of [[Medieval History]] at [[Magdalen College]],<ref>{{cite news |title=Alan Bennett: timeline of the writer's life |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/film/the-lady-in-the-van/alan-bennett-timeline/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/film/the-lady-in-the-van/alan-bennett-timeline/ |archive-date=11 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |date=3 November 2015<!--from page source--> |work=The Daily Telegraph}}{{cbignore}}</ref> before deciding, in 1960, that he was not suited to being an academic.

==Career==
[[File:Beyond the Fringe original cast.JPG|thumb|Bennett (second left) in ''Beyond the Fringe'' on Broadway {{circa}} 1962]]

=== Early career ===
In August 1960, Bennett – along with [[Dudley Moore]], [[Jonathan Miller]] and [[Peter Cook]] – gained fame after an appearance at the [[Edinburgh Festival]] in the satirical revue ''[[Beyond the Fringe]]'', with the show continuing in London and New York. He also appeared in ''[[My Father Knew Lloyd George (TV programme)|My Father Knew Lloyd George]]''. His television comedy sketch series ''[[On the Margin]]'' (1966) was erased; the [[BBC]] re-used expensive videotape rather than keep it in the archives. However, in 2014 it was announced that audio copies of the entire series had been found.<ref>{{cite news |title = Alan Bennett's lost series On The Margin is recovered|date=17 March 2014 | website = [[BBC News Online]] | url = https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-26609104}}</ref>

Bennett's first stage play, ''[[Forty Years On (play)|Forty Years On]],'' directed by [[Patrick Garland]] and starring [[John Gielgud]], was produced in 1968. His second play, ''[[Getting On (play)|Getting On]]'', also directed by Garland and starring [[Kenneth More]], opened in 1971. Many television, stage and radio plays followed, with screenplays, short stories, novellas, a large body of non-fictional prose, and broadcasting and many appearances as an actor.

Despite a long history with both the [[Royal National Theatre|National Theatre]] and the BBC, Bennett never writes on commission, saying "I don't work on commission, I just do it [[Spec script|on spec]]. If people don't want it then it's too bad."<ref>{{cite web  | last = Seale | first = Jack |url=https://www.radiotimes.com/news/2014-09-27/heres-one-i-wrote-earlier-alan-bennett-on-denmark-hill |title=Here's one I wrote earlier: Alan Bennett on Denmark Hill |website=[[Radio Times]] |access-date = 3 February 2020 | date = 27 September 2014}}</ref>

Bennett's many works for television include his first play for the medium, ''A Day Out'' in 1972,  ''A Little Outing'' in 1977, ''Intensive Care'' in 1982, ''An Englishman Abroad'' in 1983, and ''[[A Question of Attribution]]'' in 1991.<ref name="screenonline">{{Cite web|url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/504794/credits.html|title=Bennett, Alan (1934– ): Film and TV Credits {{!}} Screenonline|website=www.screenonline.org.uk|language=en|access-date=28 May 2023}}</ref> But perhaps his most famous screen work is the 1988 ''[[Talking Heads (British TV series)|Talking Heads]]'' series of monologues for television which were later performed at the [[Comedy Theatre]] in London in 1992. A second set of six ''Talking Heads'' followed a decade later.

=== 1980s ===
Bennett wrote the play ''[[Enjoy (play)|Enjoy]]'' in 1980. It barely scraped a run of seven weeks at the [[Vaudeville Theatre]], in spite of the stellar cast of [[Joan Plowright]], [[Colin Blakely]], [[Susan Littler]], Philip Sayer, [[Liz Smith (actress)|Liz Smith]] (who replaced [[Joan Hickson]] during rehearsals) and, in his first West End role, [[Marc Sinden]]. It was directed by [[Ronald Eyre]].<ref>Shenton, Mark.[https://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog/2008/aug/28/whichflopsareripeforreviv "Which flops are ripe for revival?"], Theatre Blog, ''The Guardian'', 28 August 2008</ref> A new production of ''Enjoy'' attracted very favourable notices during its 2008 UK tour<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog/2009/feb/06/alan-bennett-enjoy-theatre |title=Let's enjoy Alan Bennett's revival play for what it is – Daniel Tapper on Alan Bennett's Enjoy|first=Daniel |last=Tapper|newspaper=The Guardian|date=6 February 2009}}</ref> and moved to the West End of London in January 2009.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/culturecritics/charlesspencer/4445302/Enjoy-by-Alan-Bennett-at-the-Geilgud-Theatre-review.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090207142329/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/culturecritics/charlesspencer/4445302/Enjoy-by-Alan-Bennett-at-the-Geilgud-Theatre-review.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=2009-02-07 |title=Enjoy by Alan Bennett at the Gielgud Theatre, review|first=Charles|last= Spencer|newspaper=The Daily Telegraph|date= 3 February 2009}}</ref> The West End show took more than £1&nbsp;million in advance ticket sales<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7859706.stm Curtain re-opens on Bennett Play] BBC News, 29 January 2009</ref> and even extended the run to cope with demand.<ref>[https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/theatre-news/news/bennetts-enjoy-extends-two-weeks-to-16-may-2009 Bennett's Enjoy extends two weeks to 16 May 2009] London Theatre, 18 February 2009</ref> The production starred [[Alison Steadman]], [[David Troughton]], Richard Glaves, Carol Macready and [[Josie Walker]].

=== 1990s ===
Bennett wrote ''[[The Lady in the Van]]'' based on his experiences with an eccentric woman called [[Miss Shepherd]], who lived on Bennett's driveway in a series of dilapidated vans for more than fifteen years. It was first published in 1989 as an essay in the ''[[London Review of Books]]''. In 1990 he published it in book form.  In 1999 he adapted it into a stage play, which starred [[Maggie Smith]] and was directed by [[Nicholas Hytner]]. The stage play includes two characters named Alan Bennett. On 21 February 2009 it was broadcast as a radio play on BBC Radio 4, with Maggie Smith reprising her role and Alan Bennett playing himself. He adapted the story again for a 2015 film, with Maggie Smith reprising her role again, and Nicholas Hytner directing again. In the film [[Alex Jennings]] plays the two versions of Bennett, although Alan Bennett appears in a cameo at the very end of the film.

Bennett adapted his 1991 play ''[[The Madness of George III]]'' for the cinema. Entitled ''[[The Madness of King George]]'' (1994), the film received four [[Academy Award]] nominations: for Bennett's writing and the performances of [[Nigel Hawthorne]] and [[Helen Mirren]]. It won the award for best art direction.

In 1995 Bennett wrote and hosted the three-part BBC documentary series ''[[The Abbey (1995 TV series)|The Abbey]]'', directed by [[Jonathan Stedall]]. The programme provides a personal tribute to, and tour of, [[Westminster Abbey]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001z7gr|title=BBC Two – The Abbey with Alan Bennett|publisher=BBC}}</ref>

=== 21st century ===
[[File:The History Boys at The Doon School.jpg|thumb|upright=1.15|A 2007 production of Bennett's ''The History Boys'' at [[The Doon School]], India.]]
Bennett's critically acclaimed ''[[The History Boys]]'' won three [[Laurence Olivier Award]]s in 2005, for Best New Play, Best Actor ([[Richard Griffiths]]), and Best Direction ([[Nicholas Hytner]]), having previously won [[Critics' Circle Theatre Awards]] and [[Evening Standard Awards]] for Best Actor and Best Play. Bennett also received the Laurence Olivier Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Theatre.<ref>{{cite news|last=Jury|first= Louise|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/news/historic-night-for-alan-bennett-as-his-new-play-dominates-the-olivier-awards-746003.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100223202113/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/news/historic-night-for-alan-bennett-as-his-new-play-dominates-the-olivier-awards-746003.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2010-02-23|title=Historic night for Alan Bennett as his new play dominates the Olivier awards|newspaper=The Independent|date=21 February 2005}}</ref> ''The History Boys'' won six [[Tony Awards]] on Broadway, including best play, best performance by a leading actor in a play (Richard Griffiths), best performance by a featured actress in a play ([[Frances de la Tour]]) and best direction of a play (Nicholas Hytner). A film version of ''[[The History Boys (film)|The History Boys]]'' was released in the UK in October 2006. In his 2005 prose collection ''Untold Stories'', Bennett wrote of the mental illness that his mother and other family members suffered.

At the [[Royal National Theatre|National Theatre]] in late 2009 [[Nicholas Hytner]] directed Bennett's play ''[[The Habit of Art]]'', about the relationship between the poet [[W. H. Auden]] and the composer [[Benjamin Britten]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.com/life-style/celebrity/article/nicholas-hytner-on-his-time-at-the-national-theatre-fqrdjvvpwrf|url-status=live|url-access=subscription|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110616200344/http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/stage/theatre/article5677238.ece/theatre/article5677238.ece|archive-date=16 June 2011|title=Nicholas Hytner on his time at the National Theatre|last=Nightingale|first=Benedict|newspaper=[[The Times]]|date=9 February 2009}} Archived version is available without subscription.</ref>

Bennett's play ''[[People (play)|People]]'' opened at the National Theatre in October 2012.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2012/jan/23/alan-bennett-new-play-people |title=Alan Bennett's new play to open at National Theatre|first=Matt|last=Trueman|newspaper=The Guardian|date= 23 January 2012}}</ref> In December that year, ''[[Cocktail Sticks]]'', an autobiographical play by Bennett, premièred at the National Theatre as part of a double bill with the monologue ''Hymn''.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2012/dec/17/hymn-cocktail-sticks-review|title=Hymn/Cocktail Sticks – review|last=Billington|first=Michael|author-link=Michael Billington (critic)|date=17 December 2012|access-date=3 January 2015|work=[[The Guardian]]}}</ref> The production was directed by Bennett's long-term collaborator Nicholas Hytner. It was well-received, and transferred to the [[Duchess Theatre]] in the [[West End of London]], being subsequently adapted for radio broadcast by [[BBC Radio 4]].<ref>{{cite web|work=[[BBC Radio 4]]|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04wnpr6|title=Cocktail Sticks|date=3 January 2015}} Audio not available.</ref>

In July 2018, ''[[Allelujah!]]'', a comic drama by Bennett about a [[National Health Service]] hospital threatened with closure, opened at London's [[Bridge Theatre]] to critical acclaim.<ref>[https://bridgetheatre.co.uk/whats-on/allelujah/ "Allelujah!"], "Bridge Theatre". Retrieved 25 August 2018</ref>

==Personal life==
[[File:World-war-one-gravestone-clarence-peel.redvers.jpg|right|thumb|150px|The headstone, in [[Larch Wood (Railway Cutting) Cemetery]], of Alan Bennett's Uncle Clarence, subject of a 1985 radio monologue]]
Bennett lived for 40 years on [[Gloucester Crescent]] in [[Camden Town]], London, and in 2006 moved a few minutes' walk away to [[Primrose Hill]] with his partner Rupert Thomas, the former editor of ''[[The World of Interiors]]'' magazine.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2004/may/14/theatre3 |title=The Guardian profile: Alan Bennett|newspaper=The Guardian|first=Aida|last=Edemariam|author-link=Aida Edemariam|date= 14 May 2004}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2016/dec/18/alan-bennett-i-dont-fret-about-posterity-interview | title=Alan Bennett: 'I don't fret about posterity. But some things will last' | newspaper=The Observer | date=18 December 2016 | last1=McCrum | first1=Robert |author-link=Robert McCrum}}</ref> Bennett also had a long-term relationship with his former housekeeper, Anne Davies, until her death in 2009.<ref name="Billy Kenber">{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/news/alan-bennett-reveals-that-his-lover-caf-anne-is-dead-1825391.html |title=Alan Bennett reveals that his lover, 'Café Anne', is dead|first=Billy|last=Kenber|newspaper=The Independent|date=22 November 2009}}</ref>

Bennett is an agnostic.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.radiotimes.com/news/2016-12-24/alan-bennett-you-have-to-be-careful-about-becoming-an-old-git/|work=[[Radio Times]]|title=Alan Bennett: "You have to be careful about becoming an old git"|date=24 December 2016|access-date=28 November 2019}}</ref> He was raised [[Anglican]] and gradually "left it [the church] over the years".<ref>{{YouTube|wAl74KQ_IZI}}</ref>

In 1988, Bennett declined the award of [[Commander of the Order of the British Empire]] (CBE) and in 1996 declined a [[knighthood]].<ref>[https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/sir-alan-oh-no-itd-be-like-wearing-a-suit-every-day-1693491.html Playwright who rejected a knighthood says he's probably the last real monarchist left in Britain] ''The Independent'', 31 May 2009</ref>

In September 2005, Bennett revealed that, in 1997, he had undergone treatment for [[colorectal cancer]] and described the illness as a "bore". His chances of survival were given as being "much less" than 50 per cent and surgeons had told him they removed a "rock-bun" sized tumour.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/4277976.stm "Alan Bennett reveals cancer fight"], ''BBC News'', 24 September 2005</ref> He began ''Untold Stories'' (published 2005) thinking it would be published posthumously, but his cancer went into remission.

In the autobiographical sketches which form a large part of the book Bennett says of himself "I am homosexual", but also mentions "flings" with women. Previously Bennett had referred to questions about his sexuality as like asking a man who has just crawled across the [[Sahara]] desert to choose between [[Perrier]] or [[Malvern, Worcestershire|Malvern]] mineral water.<ref>[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/telegraph-view/3612508/Inside-Bennetts-fridge.html "Inside Bennett's fridge"], ''The Daily Telegraph'', 30 October 2004</ref>

In October 2008, Bennett announced that he was donating his entire archive of working papers, unpublished manuscripts, diaries and books to the [[Bodleian Library]], stating that it was a gesture of thanks repaying a debt he felt he owed to the [[British welfare state]] that had given him educational opportunities which his humble family background would otherwise never have afforded.<ref>Kennedy, Maev [https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2008/oct/24/alan-bennett-oxford-university "A small way of saying thank you: Bennett donates his life's work to the Bodleian"], ''The Guardian'', 24 October 2008</ref>

In September 2015, Bennett endorsed [[Jeremy Corbyn]]'s campaign in the [[2015 Labour Party leadership election (UK)|Labour Party leadership election]].<ref name="heraldscotland">{{cite news |url=http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/13637728.Alan_Bennett__the_UK_Government_is_deplorable____but_Corbyn_has_given_things_a_good_kick_in_the_pants/|title=Alan Bennett: the UK Government is deplorable... but Corbyn has given things a good kick in the pants|location=Glasgow|newspaper=[[The Herald (Glasgow)|The Herald]]|date=1 September 2015|access-date=1 May 2018}}</ref> The following month, after Corbyn's election victory, Bennett said: "I approve of him. If only because it brings Labour back to what they ought to be thinking about."<ref name="theguardian">{{cite news |last=Gani|first=Aisha|url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2015/oct/31/alan-bennett-tories-govern-with-totalitarian-attitude|title=Alan Bennett: Tories govern with 'totalitarian attitude'|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|date=31 October 2015|access-date=1 May 2018}}</ref>

Following the death of [[Jonathan Miller]] in 2019, Bennett became the only surviving member of the original ''Beyond the Fringe'' quartet which had also included [[Peter Cook]] and [[Dudley Moore]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-50574472|title=Theatre director Sir Jonathan Miller dies aged 85|work=BBC News|date=27 November 2019|publisher=BBC}}</ref>

For many years Bennett has owned a cottage in [[Clapham, North Yorkshire|Clapham]] in the Yorkshire Dales.<ref name="Billy Kenber"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://claphamyorkshire.co.uk/2024/05/31/clapham-newsletter-149-june-2024/|title=Clapham Newsletter 149, June 2024|date=31 May 2024}}</ref>

==Work==
{{main|List of works by Alan Bennett}}
'''Selected credits'''

===Film===
{{columns-list|colwidth=20em|
* ''[[A Private Function]]'' (screenplay), 1984
* ''[[Prick Up Your Ears]]'' (screenplay), 1987
* ''[[Little Dorrit (1987 film)|Little Dorrit]]'', 1987
* ''[[The Madness of King George]]'' (screenplay), 1994
* ''[[The History Boys (film)|The History Boys]]'' (screenplay), 2006
* ''[[The Lady in the Van]]'' (screenplay), 2015
* ''[[Allelujah (film)|Allelujah]]'' (co-written), 2022
* ''[[The Choral]]'' (screenplay), 2025
}}

===Theatre===
{{columns-list|colwidth=20em|
* ''[[The Madness of George III]]'' (writer), 1991
* ''[[The Wind in the Willows (play)|The Wind in the Willows]]'' (writer), 1991
* ''[[Talking Heads (play)|Talking Heads]]'' (also writer), 1992
* ''[[The Lady in the Van]]'' (writer), 1999
* ''[[The History Boys]]'' (writer), 2004
* ''[[The Habit of Art]]'' (writer), 2009
* ''[[People (play)|People]]'' (writer), 2012
* ''[[Cocktail Sticks]]'' (writer), 2012
* ''[[Allelujah!]]'' (writer), 2018
}}

==Bibliography==
{{columns-list|colwidth=20em|
* ''Beyond the Fringe'' (with [[Peter Cook]], [[Jonathan Miller]], and [[Dudley Moore]]). London: Souvenir Press, 1962, and New York: Random House, 1963
* ''Forty Years On'', London: Faber, 1969
* ''Getting On'', London: Faber, 1972
* ''Habeas Corpus'', London: Faber, 1973
* ''The Old Country'', London: Faber, 1978
* ''Enjoy'', London: Faber, 1980
* ''Office Suite'', London: Faber, 1981
* ''Objects of Affection'', London: BBC Publications, 1982
* ''A Private Function'', London: Faber, 1984
* ''Forty Years On; Getting On; Habeas Corpus'', London: Faber, 1985
* ''The Writer in Disguise'', London: Faber, 1985
* ''Prick Up Your Ears: The Film Screenplay'', London: Faber, 1987
* ''Two Kafka Plays'', London: Faber, 1987
* ''Talking Heads'', London: BBC Publications, 1988; New York: Summit, 1990
* ''Single Spies'', London: Faber, 1989
* ''The Lady in the Van'' (essay in the ''London Review of Books''), 1989
* ''The Lady in the Van'' (book), 1990
* ''Single Spies and Talking Heads'', New York: Summit, 1990
* ''Poetry in Motion'', (with others). 1990
* ''The Wind in the Willows'', London: Faber, 1991
* ''Forty Years on and Other Plays'', London: Faber, 1991
* ''The Madness of George III'', London: Faber, 1992
* ''Poetry in Motion 2'' (with others) 1992
* ''[[Writing Home]]'' (diaries) London: Faber, 1994
* ''The Madness of King George'' (screenplay), 1995
* ''Father! Father! Burning Bright'' (prose version of 1982 TV script, ''Intensive Care''), 1999
* ''The Laying on of Hands'' (stories), 2000
* ''The Clothes They Stood Up In'' (novella), 2001
* ''Untold Stories'' (diaries), London, 2005, {{ISBN|0-571-22830-5}}
* ''[[The Uncommon Reader]]'' (novella), London, 2007
* ''A Life Like Other People's'' (memoir), London, 2009
* ''Smut: Two Unseemly Stories'' (stories), London, 2011
* ''Six Poets: Hardy to Larkin: An Anthology'', London: Faber, 2015
* ''Keeping On Keeping On'' (diaries), London, 2016<ref>{{cite web|last=Bennett |first=Alan |url=https://www.nyjournalofbooks.com/book-review/keeping-keeping |title=Nicholas Delbancio in The New York Journal of Books |work=New York Journal of Books |date=11 December 2018 |access-date=11 December 2012}}</ref>
* ''The Shielding of Mrs Forbes'', London: Faber, 2019 (part of ''Faber Stories'' series)
}}
* ''House Arrest: Pandemic Diaries'', London: Faber, 2022

==Awards and honours==
{{main|List of awards and nominations received by Alan Bennett}}

Bennett was made an Honorary Fellow of [[Exeter College, Oxford]], in 1987. He was also awarded a [[D.Litt]] by the [[University of Leeds]] in 1990<ref>[http://www.leeds.ac.uk/news/article/443/an_evening_with_alan_bennett An evening with Alan Bennett] University of Leeds, 29 October 2007</ref> and an honorary doctorate from [[Kingston University]] in 1996. In 1998 he refused an honorary doctorate from Oxford University, in protest at its acceptance of funding for a chair from press baron [[Rupert Murdoch]].<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/255738.stm "Bennett snubs Oxford over Murdoch chair"], BBC News, 15 January 1999</ref> He also declined a [[CBE]] in 1988 and a knighthood in 1996.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2009/may/07/alan-bennett-birthday-writing?INTCMP=SRCH |title=Birthday boy" – Blake Morrison salutes Alan Bennett as the writer approaches his 75th birthday|first=Blake|last=Morrison|author-link=Blake Morrison|newspaper=The Guardian|date=7 May 2009}}</ref> He has stated that, although he is not a republican, he would never wish to be knighted, saying it would be a bit like having to wear a suit for the rest of his life.<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/arts/frontrow/archive.shtml Featured interview: Alan Bennett In Conversation] ''Front Row'' archive, BBC Radio 4 (Audio, 1 hr)</ref>

In December 2011, Bennett returned to [[Lawnswood School]], nearly 60 years after he left, to unveil the renamed Alan Bennett Library.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/news/latest-news/central-leeds/alan_bennett_playwright_returns_to_leeds_school_video_1_4048939|title=Alan Bennett: Playwright returns to Leeds school Video –Central Leeds – Yorkshire Evening Post|website=yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk}}</ref> He said he "loosely" based ''The History Boys'' on his experiences at the school and his admission to Oxford. Lawnswood School dedicated its library to the writer after he emerged as a vocal campaigner against public library cuts.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-16110234|title=Alan Bennett warns over tuition fees|work=BBC News|date=10 December 2011}}</ref> Plans to shut local libraries were "wrong and very short-sighted", Bennett said, adding: "We're impoverishing young people."

==In popular culture==
* In the film for television ''[[Not Only But Always]]'', about the careers of [[Peter Cook]] and [[Dudley Moore]], Bennett is portrayed by [[Alan Cox (actor)|Alan Cox]].{{cn|date=January 2025}}
* Along with the other members of ''[[Beyond the Fringe]]'', Bennett is portrayed in the play ''[[Pete and Dud: Come Again]]'', by Chris Bartlett and [[Nick Awde]].{{cn|date=January 2025}}
* Bennett voices himself in the episode "[[Brian's Play]]" of the animated series ''[[Family Guy]]''.{{cn|date=January 2025}}
* Bennett was portrayed by [[Harry Enfield]] as [[Stalin]], in an episode of "Talking Heads of State", in BBC Two's 2014 satirical ''[[Harry and Paul's Story of the Twos]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2014/may/31/the-complainers-the-story-of-women-and-art-harry-and-pauls-story-of-the-twos-review|title=The Complainers; The Story of Women and Art; Harry and Paul's Story of the Twos – review|quote=Enfield, as Alan Bennett, as a Talking Heads Stalin, torn between curtain-fussery and genocide, was the most surreal vision this perfect pair have ever concocted, but worked |last=Ferguson|first=Euan|work=The Guardian|date=31 May 2014}}</ref>
* Bennett is portrayed by [[Reece Dinsdale]] in a 2014 production of ''Untold Stories'' at the [[West Yorkshire Playhouse]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wyp.org.uk/what's-on/2014/untold-stories/|title=What's on – Untold Stories|website=West Yorkshire Playhouse|date=2 June 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140607025536/http://www.wyp.org.uk/what's-on/2014/untold-stories|archive-date=7 June 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* Bennett is portrayed by British actor [[Alex Jennings]] in the 2015 comedy-drama film ''[[The Lady in the Van]]''. He appears as himself briefly at the end of the film.{{cn|date=January 2025}}
* In the season 2 episode "Mystery Man" of the Netflix show ''[[The Crown (TV series)|The Crown]]'', Bennett is portrayed by British actor Seb Carrington.{{Citation needed|date=December 2024}}
* In [[Stewart Lee]]'s 2022 comedy special "Tornado", Bennett appears as himself at the very end. In the appearance, Bennett states that [[Erving Goffman]] would have enjoyed the special. This refers to a review of Lee's comedy that Bennett wrote for ''[[The London Review of Books]]'' in 2017 and acts as a callback to a previous joke in the special.{{Citation needed|date=December 2024}}

==See also==
* [[List of British actors]]
* [[List of Academy Award winners and nominees from Great Britain]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* Peter Wolfe, ''Understanding Alan Bennett'', [[University of South Carolina]] Press, {{ISBN|1-57003-280-7}}
* {{cite book | last=Games| first=Alexander| title=Backing into The Limelight: The Biography of Alan Bennett| publisher=Headline| year=2001 | isbn= 0-7472-7030-9 }}
* Joseph H. O'Mealy, ''Alan Bennett: A Critical Introduction'', Routledge, 2001, {{ISBN|0-8153-3540-7}}
* Kara McKechnie, Alan Bennett, The Television Series, Manchester University Press, 2007. {{ISBN|978-0-7190-6806-5}}
* [[Robert Hewison]], ''Footlights – A Hundred Years of Cambridge Comedy'', Methuen, 1983
* [[Roger Wilmut]], ''From Fringe to Flying Circus – Celebrating a Unique Generation of Comedy 1960–1980'', Eyre Methuen, 1980, {{ISBN|978-0-413-46950-2}}
* [[Ronald Bergan]], ''Beyond the Fringe...and Beyond: a critical biography of Alan Bennett, Peter Cook, Jonathan Miller and Dudley Moore'', London: Virgin, 1989

==External links==
{{Wikiquote}}
{{Commons category}}
* [https://www.unitedagents.co.uk/alan-bennett United Agents – Alan Bennett]
* [https://www.unitedagents.co.uk/cv/9274/books United Agents – Alan Bennett – Books CV]
* [https://www.unitedagents.co.uk/cv/9274/film_tv_theatre United Agents – Films, TV & Theatre CV]
* {{in lang|fr}} [http://point2mire.wixsite.com/alanbennett French website dedicated to Alan Bennett]
* [https://literature.britishcouncil.org/writer/alan-bennett Profile at the British Council]
* [https://www.bbc.co.uk/archive/writers/12273.shtml Interview ''BBC archive'' 6 December 2009] with [[Mark Lawson]]. (Video, 1 hr)
* [https://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/arts/frontrow/archive.shtml BBC Interview] Radio 4 ''Front Row'' archive. (Audio, 1 hr)
* [http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/person.php?sText=alan+bennett&submitSearchTerm%5Fx=0&submitSearchTerm%5Fy=0&search=ss&OConly=true&firstRun=true&LinkID=mp06072 Portraits at the National Portrait Gallery] (3 pages)
* {{IMDb name|0003141}}
* {{British Comedy Guide|people|alan_bennett}}
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7859706.stm "Curtain re-opens on Bennett play"] BBC News, 29 January 2009 – Video interview with Alan Bennett
* {{Screenonline name|504794|Alan Bennett}}
<!--already in refs* [https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2009/may/07/alan-bennett-birthday-writing?INTCMP=SRCH ''Guardian'' profile "Birthday boy"] 7 May 2009 by [[Blake Morrison]].-->
* [http://us.macmillan.com/author/alanbennettdl Alan Bennett] at [[Macmillan Books]]
* [https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b069gvl5 Alan Bennett's Talking Heads BBC Radio 4 "The Reunion"]. (Audio, 42 min)
* Archival material at {{wikidata|qualifier|property|P485|Q24568958|P856|format=\[%q %p\]}}

{{Navboxes
|title = [[List of awards and nominations received by Alan Bennett|Awards for Alan Bennett]]
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{{British Academy Television Award for Best Entertainment Performance}}
{{OlivierAward MusicalActor}}
{{London Film Critics Circle Award for Screenwriter of the Year}}
{{OlivierAward SpecialAward}}
{{Special Tony Award}}
}}
{{British Triple Crown of Acting winners}}

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