Oral History: David Weston

My name is David Weston. I’m 88 this week, and I was one of the original founder members of the National Youth Theatre 70 years ago.

Hal Wallis, Casablanca, the legendary producer, gave this big party in a square near Harrods. And I walked into the room, and the rest of the cast were there. There was, um, Sir John Gielgud, Sir Felix Aylmer, Sir Donald Wolf- Wolfit, Peter O’Toole, Siân Phillips, uh, Hal Wallis, Richard Burton, and Elizabeth Taylor. And the only person I’d ever met before was Richard Burton. So I went up to him and, and frankly I said, “Well, I did what you said.” And he was spoken to. “What do you mean?” I said, “Well, you remember seven years ago, you came to the National Youth Theatre and you saw me and you told me I should become an actor.” And he, “Oh, yes. I remember you well. You were very good.” Elizabeth Taylor, who was looking very bored, sudden- suddenly sparked an interest. He said, “Yes, you were very good as Henry V.” And I said, “No, no, I didn’t play Henry V. I played Pistol.” He said, he said, “Oh, yes, you were very good.” By that time, Elizabeth Taylor didn’t hear a word into him. But Richard, he was marvellous to act with. And of all the actors I’ve worked with, uh, I, I… Although he drank too much and he had, he, they didn’t work much after lunchtime, he was wonderful. I, I still think he, he, he had this c- marvellous charisma and, uh, I was, I spent very happy three months with him. That’s quite incredible that at that point being involved in the Youth Theatre meant that you got career advice from Richard Burton. Yeah. It’s quite a… And then you went on to, to work with him. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It’s incredible. Um, I would love to just hear a little bit more about, um, some of your career- Mm-hmm beyond the Youth Theatre. Oops, sorry. Um- I mean, I did want to ask you a little bit more about Julius Caesar in 1960. Mm-hmm. Um, because I had read, not to, not to be going back and forth, but I hope that’s okay just to ask you- Sure, sure … a bit more about that. Just, just because I’d read such a number of, um Uh, reviews- Mm of that particular performance. Uh, and you being described as having, uh, noted for your rough charm. I read in a review, and I thought that was quite wonderful. I wondered as a, as a young, as a young person in ’90… Being on the West End- Yeah … it’s quite, um, quite an achievement. Yeah. Well, we… You see, we did it every year. M- Michael, uh, was on good terms with Peachy Beaumont, and at those times, the We- the West End, there was always a… In August was the bad month, there was always a theatre empty. Mm. And so we’d done it with Hamlet a few years before. That was the big one, Hamlet. Mm. And then, um, we did it with Julius Caesar. Then, then we did it with Richard II and Henry IV. Become that… And it was… Yeah, we were acting in the West End on the, on… As amateurs. And, uh… I might put the two and two together, of course. Yes. August is a quiet- Yeah, it’s a quiet- … is a quiet time. Yeah. So that makes sense that Michael Croft would take that- Yeah opportunity.