Sir Patrick Stewart’s English Teacher Introduced Him To Shakespeare | Conan O'Brien Needs A Friend

you talk about how when you grow up in. this situation you often don't have. people would assume well a young Sir. Patrick St would have Big Dreams you. didn't initially you thought I I guess. I'll be a lorry driver a truck driver. yep because you think you look at your. world and you think this is what's. possible yep and then what changed what. came along that made you think the. theater because the theater is really. the your passion in life you've had.

obviously so much success television and. film but it's really the theater has. been the Dynamo in your. life what happened was a man called. cesil. dormund he was my English teacher in my. secondary modern school because I was. totally not academic in fact um you know. you you at the age of 11 you could go to.

grammar school which was meant that you. had an academic potential or you went to. what was known as secondary modern. school and on the day of the. exam I was just um half a mile away from. the school where the exam was being held. just before you got there there was a. tea Junction and turn right and 200. yards away was the school turn left and. you go down theill Hill into the valley.

where um murfield was built around the. river CER and the railway lines and the. canal cuz we had Canal barges and then. once you'd cross them you would climb up. in the beginning of the Dales on the. other side and you could look down onto. the town from up there and that's where. I went I turn left and not right. actually I've been turning left all my. life yeah which is both funny and not.

but um so I didn't take the exam and so. I was never tested but I went to. secondary modern school and in my second. year the English master CLE dormand I. did I did something read something in a. class and he I saw him pay attention and. he was the first person to put a copy of. Shakespeare into my hand I never held a. copy of Shakespeare in my man and and he.

it was just a surprise one day in the. English class and he was handing out. these books slim little books and said. all right this is U find Act 4 scene one. and uh okay you're playing uh Porsche. you're playing banio you're playing. Orlando and Patrick finally you're. wow and uh we read this scene. and my character didn't speak for a half.

a page or so and then he had a speech of. about 40 lines which is one of the most. famous speeches in Shakespeare and. um I had no idea what I was saying I was. trying to say the words though most of. them I didn't understand and um and. yet something. happened I made a connection I. loved pronouncing these words I was. never I I I'd never spoken a language.

like that out loud I mean I hadn't even. spoken English when I was a child I. spoke not just with an accent I spoke. dialect so uh do you want an instance. yeah I do. um this is this is my favorite uh if I. go to a neighbor's house to ask if the. lad my age is coming out you know for. kick a ball around or everything when he. came to the door I would say to him. that's Lake an.

art. what what at a lake in art at a lake an. art at Art Thou because when I was. growing up we said thee and thou not. because we were religious at all but it. was just the way you know. workingclass West riding people spoke. yeah ATA art thou Laken now this is the. amazing. thing in Shakespeare's day actors were.

also known as Lakers and I the word I. was using was playing Lakers stood in. for playing at uh are you Laken playing. at out oh my at a lak out it's funny and. you didn't know the derivation of any of. this you just know that's what it is you. just just saying you don't you don't. know what any of this is coming from no. nothing at all but the moment came when. uh a second teacher who was the my book.

is dedicated to these two people um um. cesil dormund and Ruth win Owen who was. a retired professional actress now. living with her husband in Yorkshire and. teaching and um she said to me one day. you know Patrick if you really are. enthusiastic about. performing you've got to lose that. accent and so I started the next day.

right away and for several years I spoke. with one accent at weekends when I was. going to my drama classes and one. accident Monday to Friday when I was in. school cuz if I talk like that in the. classroom whack I got thumped you know. no the other kids don't take kindly to. that ah gentlemen and kind women who the. does the thing that. ask sorry. d.

I believe it's time for my jelly and. peanut. butter.