Organisers of the Olivier awards have said they will rename future best director prizes after the late Sir Peter Hall, and have apologised unreservedly for missing his name from the In Memoriam section of last Sunday’s ceremony.
Hall, founder of the Royal Shakespeare Company when he was just 29, and the former director of the National Theatre who oversaw its move to the South Bank in 1976, was a towering figure in British theatre.
He died last September, aged 86. Incredibly, when the Oliviers showed its annual reel of tributes to figures who had passed away last year, Hall’s name was absent.
On Tuesday the Society of London Theatres (SOLT), which organises the Oliviers, said the omission was an accident and said it “apologises unreservedly for this serious error”.
In a statement it continued: “In recognition of Sir Peter’s phenomenal contribution to British theatre over many decades, and in close consultation with the Hall family, SOLT has taken the decision to rename the Olivier award for best director the “Sir Peter Hall award for best director” from next year’s ceremony and in perpetuity thereafter.
“SOLT is also reviewing the process by which people are included in the In Memoriam segment for future ceremonies.”
The society has also updated the In Memoriam video that is on YouTube.
An edited version of the show was broadcast on ITV1 on Sunday night and attracted 600,000 viewers. It was also live on Magic Radio, and listeners reportedly heard the ceremony host Catherine Tate going back on fluffed lines, occasionally swearing. She later apologised after it was pointed out the event was going out live.
- This article was amended on 11 April 2018 to correct the year in which the National Theatre moved to its current home on London’s South Bank
