Summer Wine and Worzel Weather

For some actors, their first steps into the profession are often hindered by their parents’ desire for them to “get a proper job”. Not so Sarah Thomas, who played Glenda in the sitcom Last of the Summer Wine.

- Simon Stabler

“My mother instilled a love of the creative arts by regularly taking me to the theatre, ballet, art galleries and concerts from an early age,” recalls Sarah. “She had been an amateur actress in south Wales, and when the family came to London, the first thing she did was to join a local society, The Circle. They’d put on productions at local gala festivals.

“At that time, I didn’t have any great desire to be an actress. But, as a child of about eight, I helped backstage, painting scenery, making props and was gradually given parts. And then, when I was 17, I played Alice in Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass at the Toynbee Theatre in London.

“So, it was a sort of gradual awakening to the pleasure of being on stage. I was quite a shy child and didn’t take part in school plays. And, in fact, I heard from a fellow pupil years later that when I said I’d like to go to drama school, my whole class fell about laughing. Which is very nice but I had the last laugh I guess.”

After graduating from the Rose Bruford Training College of Speech and Drama, Sarah joined the repertory company at Chelmsford, Essex.

“It was a great start, because you were able to learn your skills on the job, as it were. And reps just don’t exist in the same way today. I played juveniles, maids, children, old ladies and character parts. It was a wonderful start to the business.

“We did a new play every two weeks, and I also did weekly rep at Southwold, which was an experience in itself. Monday the first play went on, Tuesday act one of the next play was rehearsed, Wednesday act two, Thursday act three, Friday a run of the play, and Saturday dress rehearsal. All the time performing the first play in the evening.