Adrian Lester calls for public money to be ringfenced to make British film and television more diverse

The Hustle actor said it is time to implement change
Time for change: Sir Kenneth Branagh, director Indhu Rubasingham and Adrian Lester
Dave Benett
Matt Watts2 February 2016
The Weekender

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Adrian Lester says plans to promote diversity on screen need “teeth” to create “lasting change”.

As the Oscars race row rages on, the Hustle actor, 47, also called for public money to be ringfenced to make British film and television more diverse.

His calls echo those of Sir Lenny Henry, who is part of a BBC diversity action group which called for £100 million to be spent by the broadcaster to more accurately reflect its audience.

Lester, who is appearing in the play Red Velvet, told the Standard: “It really is about time that we both in Britain and America stop just pointing out what is wrong and implement a lasting change. TV companies have jumped on and started to implement change themselves. I personally would like to see some teeth put to that change.”

He wants to see the Government ring-fence funds from the arts budget to help black and minority ethnic talent get more screen work.

The actor, who won acclaim for his portrayal of Othello at the National in 2013, said: “I know that ITV, BBC, Channel 4 and Sky are all actively looking to push and promote BME talent because the voices are at a crisis point. But after the complaining voices die down I would still like to see that happen.

“If we had ring-fenced public money which would roll over each year and then get increased, TV companies would not be forced to find projects but would have a great, big, massive incentive to do so. We want a healthy industry which reflects all of us.”

Red Velvet, by Lester’s wife Lolita Chakrabarti, charts the struggle against racism of Ira Aldridge, the American who in 1833 became the first black actor to play Othello on stage in London.

The Birmingham-born star said attitudes towards black actors had come a “huge” way since Aldridge’s day, but the broad themes were still relevant.

Ms Chakrabarti, who won the Evening Standard’s Charles Wintour award for most promising playwright when the work was first performed at the Tricycle Theatre in Kilburn in 2012, said: “These discussions have been going on for a really long time but they have now bubbled up into public consciousness.”

The play’s director, Indhu Rubasingham, added: “A lot of the things in the play, even though it’s set 200 years ago, are conversations and debates Lolita and I have been having personally since we have known each other, which is almost 15 years. So even though it’s set then, it’s a play about now. It’s only now it’s got into a mainstream consciousness but we have been talking about its themes for decades. It’s about an outsider. We all feel like outsiders. How does an outsider hit the mainstream or break down those barriers, whether you are a woman, from a different class or a different ethnic class?”

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The production, from the Kenneth Branagh Theatre Company, will play at the Garrick Theatre until February 27.

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