Larkin's hidden life put under stage spotlight

A TONGUE-in-cheek look at the poet Philip Larkin will be premiered at a new arts space.

A play by local author David Pattinson explores the experiences that shaped the Hull University librarian and “offers a series of unashamedly speculative perspectives on the enigmatic nature of a private man who lived his life in the public eye but still managed to keep something hidden”.

Accountant turned playwright Pattinson, 69, who has written a novel and several plays, said: “The production will speculate on the relationship Larkin had with Monica Jones his long-term mistress, there are ‘facts’ about Philip Larkin that everyone knows but few profess to understand.

“For example, it is well known that at one time he was having simultaneous affairs with three different women. Was he then a Lothario, or merely indecisive? And why did the relationship with Monica Jones outlive all the others?”

The play will be performed by Ensemble 52, which won a Manchester Evening News Theatre Award for its production of Richard Vergette’s play As We Forgive Them.

It will be directed by Andrew Pearson, who is the driving force behind both the new venue Fruit and Ensemble 52, said: “I am delighted to be able to stage Something Hidden in this very exciting space. David and I have worked closely on a number of projects and this will be a superb production to showcase at Fruit.”

Actress Maureen Lipman will be in Hull tomorrow to speak at a sell-out Larkin Society dinner – which will be attended by sculptor Martin Jennings, who has been commissioned to create a statue of Philip Larkin, which will stand at Hull’s Paragon Station. An auction to raise money for the statue appeal includes a framed set of three Larkin ties signed by Maureen Lipman, Tom Courtenay and former Poet Laureate Andrew Motion.

The play will be shown at Fruit – one of the warehouses on Humber Street in the city which has been given a new life by artists. It will run from Thursday September 23 to Sunday September 26, at 7.30pm.

Tickets are 9, with 7 concessions, and are available from www.fruitspace.co.uk or on 01482 342060.