My Town: Barrie Stead

BARRIE Stead is the operator of the Futurist Theatre in Scarborough

What do you like best about your town?

It’s got so many facets to it; it’s got a very good shopping centre, two great beaches, fantastic scenery and it’s a great, lively entertainment centre for North Yorkshire.

What would be your perfect day?

Like it was on the opening night of Calendar Girls, to stand outside the Futurist and see a house full sign up.

Do you have a favourite walk or view?

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Walking from the Sands, down the promenade, round to the Sealife Centre and to Scalby Mills. Then sitting and having a drink there, looking at the rocks and pools before wandering back.

If you had to name a hidden gem in your town, what would it be?

It has to be the Futurist and it needs the council to get behind it and put in the investment. It’s a catalyst for pulling even more visitors to a fantastic seaside town.

What are your earliest memories of the town?

About 25-30 years ago when I used to direct the big summer shows at the Futurist with Joe Longthorne, Michael Barrymore, Freddie Star. I used to come to Scarborough two weeks before the summer show, we’d rehearse with the dancers, set up the scenery. It’s funny because it hasn’t changed.

What do you think makes Scarborough special?

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It’s split into two seasons; you get the frantic Scarborough during the summer season where everything’s busy and it’s full of thousands of people. Then you get to October, November, December and suddenly it becomes yours again. It’s a different place, a sleepy, holiday coastal town, it’s almost a Victorian outlook.

In addition to ongoing developments, are there any other projects you would like to see come to fruition?

The project my wife Brenda and I are most passionate about is to see a guaranteed future for the Futurist. If it’s left to be demolished, it will be the worst catastrophe to happen to Scarborough. The Futurist is the largest theatre in the UK, it can service people for miles around and it can pull in business in January to March when it’s quiet elsewhere. The council need to think 30 to 40 years from now, the Futurist can be the top venue for musicals, the Spa for conferences, the Stephen Joseph Theatre is fantastic for the other side of entertainment and in summer there can be attractions at the Open Air Theatre, plus you’ve got all the little places such as the YMCA which does great things.

What is your pet hate about the town?

It sounds trivial, but what upset me recently is that we used to have a fishmonger who we always ordered two dressed lobsters from when we came up. But the last time we called up to order, he said he could no longer do it because the powers that be wouldn’t allow it. It just sounds absurd.

What are your hobbies?

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The life doesn’t really lend time to hobbies, but for Brenda and I, if we can finish work by 8pm we like to sit down, open a bottle of wine and relax. Apart from that, holidays where we try to travel to places we’ve never been before. The next one will be Australia.

Who or what makes you laugh?

As a performer I’ve worked with for years, it still has got be Ken Dodd. I can’t help it. The man is a genius, he’s as funny now as he was in his fifties... And the other person is my wife.