Pinter, Harold

PLAYWRIGHT, DRAMA DIRECTOR, ACTOR (ENGLAND)
BORN 10 Oct 1930, London: Hackney - DIED 24 Dec 2008, London
CAUSE OF DEATH liver cancer
GRAVE LOCATION London: Kensal Green Cemetery, Harrow Road, Kensal Green (076/2 (64144), near junction of Centre Avenue and the Circle)

Harold Pinter was the son of Jewish parents and grew up in Hackney, London. He was a fine sprinter and a cricket player, acted in school plays and wrote poetry. He didn't complete his studies at the Royal Academy od Dramatic Art after her refused national serivice as a conscientious objector. After he attended the Central School of Speech and Drama he worked as an actor in Ireland and England. In 1956 he married the actress Vivien Merchant whom he had met on tour. Their son Daniel was born in 1958.

His play "The Room" was produced in 1957 and was followed by "The Birthday Party". Merchant appeared in many of his works, but it wasn't an easy marriage and in 1975 he left her after he had started an affair with Lady Antonia Fraser. After the divorce he married Antonia in 1980.

He acted in his own works on radio and film and he directed close to 50 productions. In 2001 he was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer, but he continued his career. In 2005 he received the Nobel Prize for Literature and in 2007 he was awarded the Légion d'honneur in France. In 2008 he died in London of liver cancer.

Images

The grave of Harold Pinter at Kensal Green Cemetery, London.
Picture by Androom (25 Mar 2016)

 

The grave of Harold Pinter at Kensal Green Cemetery, London.
Picture by Androom (25 Mar 2016)

 

Sources
• Vivian-Neal, Henry & Alexander Bisset, Their Exits: Encore, The Friends of Kensal Green Cemetery, London, 2020
Harold Pinter - Wikipedia


Pinthus, Kurt

Published: 25 May 2019
Last update: 07 Apr 2024