Edgar Metcalfe

Edgar Metcalfe, (18 September 1933 – 13 September 2012) was an English-born actor, director and author, who widely contributed to theatre in Perth, Western Australia.

Personal life Edgar Metcalfe was born in 1933 in Burnley, Lancashire, United Kingdom. Edgar's father died before he was born and his mother before he was one year old. His aunt and uncle adopted him and he went to live on a farm in Lancashire. When Metcalfe was 10, his adoptive parents moved to the seaside town of Blackpool, where he gained a scholarship to the Arnold House School, a local boys' grammar school. He died in Perth, WA, on 13 September 2012.

Career

Actor On leaving school, rather than go to drama school, Metcalfe went straight into acting in the British provincial repertory theatre system, which saw him work in troupes of actors touring the country – a training ground that offered the young actor a variety of plays in which to develop his talents.

In 2008, he portrayed the Queen Mother in Two Old Queens by John Senczuk at the Riverside Theatre in Parramatta

Whilst working as the artistic director for the National, Metcalfe coordinated a co-production of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? between the National Theatre Inc. and the University of Western Australia at the Dolphin Theatre.

Subsequently, he was artistic director at The Hole in the Wall Theatre in Leederville (successfully guiding the company through a fiscally difficult time), and "Night Mother" with Jill Perryman and June Salter; and "The Nerd" and "Corpse" with the late Gordon Chater.

Author As an author, Metcalfe's writing includes six plays, a collection of short stories set in the Perth hills, and three books, the most recent being a novel based on his play Alleycat Alice and Friends.

Recognition Metcalfe was named WA Citizen of the Year in 1976 for service to the performing arts. He was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in the 1978 Queen's Birthday Honours for his services to the performing arts. In 2004 he was awarded an Honours Citation during the centenary celebrations for His Majesty's Theatre. In 2011 the renovated IMAX theatre in Perth was named the Metcalfe Playhouse, to honour the long-time artistic director at the Playhouse Theatre who did so much to secure the professional theatre industry in Perth. At the time, Metcalfe said it was a great compliment: "I'm particularly pleased that it's called the Metcalfe Playhouse because, of course, the Playhouse is where I began my Western Australian career in 1963 ... a long time ago!"

Death Metcalfe died on 13 September 2012 in Menora, Western Australia. He was less than a week from his 79th birthday. Television Movie (based on the executions of Kevin Barlow and Brian Chambers) 1988 A Cry in the Dark Dr. Brown 1993 Ship to Shore Senator Hogg TV series – 1 episode – "Greed Rules, OK?" 1998 Minty Roy the Director TV series – 1 episode – "All the World's a Stage" 2004 Foreign Exchange Old Man TV series - 1 episode - "Granny Gambit" 2007 The Sleepover Club Mr. Garcia TV series – 1 episode – "Never Too Old"

Director Year Title Notes 1975 The Olive Tree Australian Film – starring John Adam and Alan Cassell

Plays and novels Garden Party Vinegar and Brown Paper Homing Pigeon AlleyCat Alice and Friends A guy called Alice With Friends Like These...