Radio drama on Harborough FM promotes friendship across the generations
Harborough FM will soon be broadcasting a radio drama by Uppingham-based actor and writer Henry Dawe. 'The Autumn of My Years' can be heard in three instalments on Owen Brooks’ show at 7.15pm over 2, 9 and 16 October.
The play aims to show that age difference does not need to be a barrier to friendship; that older people should keep getting out and about if they can, as they never know whom they might meet; that their mood and outlook can be improved if young people show an interest in them; and that young people can derive pleasure from befriending older people. The story is intended to be touching and poignant but with a strong thread of comic dialogue through the warm humour of the principal characters.
Henry explains that The Autumn of My Years is based on two true stories. ‘I met a lady in her late fifties queuing for returns at the theatre in 2009 and we became great friends. I also used to visit my neighbour in Uppingham, Ione Roseveare, a former Bletchley Park codebreaker, when she was in her eighties. These two connections – as well as others formed locally over the years – had a profound and lasting effect on me. I was sure that there was a message to convey about inter-generational friendship and tackling loneliness. I felt that a radio play would be a good way of trying to achieve that.’
Henry recorded the play with a professional cast and director in London in July 2022 and took the part of the young man who befriends the older lady. The play was then edited and prepared for its first broadcast on Harborough FM in November 2023. Owen Brooks says, ‘I present a show which covers the performance arts. I like variety, I’d done radio plays in the past, and when I heard of Henry’s play and the subject matter I had to find out if I could broadcast it. I did, in 2023, and it got great feedback. I therefore have decided two years later to give my audience another chance to hear what is a great piece of writing.’
Henry adds, ‘I am very grateful to Owen for accepting the play for broadcast twice on the station. Having staged my first play Beyond The Pail in 2016 at The Falcon Hotel, Uppingham and six weeks later at the Leicester Comedy Festival, I am very pleased that this second play is also going to have another outing locally. I hope that listeners will enjoy the piece and identify with the messages which it aims to put across.’
In the Market Harborough area, listeners can tune in to 102.3FM. Elsewhere, click here for ways to listen:
In addition to the ways listed there, it is possible to download a free Harborough FM app.