"My acting began early and continued mostly at school. At Bolton School (1951-58) there were a number of lads who did as much acting as I did and, voracious theatre-goers, also went on the annual camp to Stratford-upon-Avon for the Shakespeare Festival. My best friends, David Hargreaves and Duncan Sculthorpe, and I were stage-struck and could alarm our peers by high-stepping routines across the playground. We all went to Cambridge, where Hargreaves ended up as Professor of Education. Sculthorpe wrote a classic study on aquatic plants. Motives other than acting itself sent me into the theatre."
— Ian McKellen, December 2006
| Year | Place | Title/Writer | Director/Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 |
Wesleyan Hall Wigan |
CHILDREN'S DAY
|
ROLE: Father |
| 1952 |
Hopefield Miniature Theatre |
TWELFTH NIGHT Extract (1952)
|
ROLE: Malvolio |
| 1952 |
Bolton Little Theatre |
SPRING 1600
|
ROLE: Jeremy |
| 1952 | Hopefield Miniature Theatre |
LES MEURTRES CHEZ LE COIFFEUR
| ROLE: Mari de la Dame |
| 1953 |
Bolton School Great Hall |
FRIAR BACON & FRIAR BUNGAY (1953)
|
ROLE: Margaret |
| 1953 |
Bolton Little Theatre |
PARADISE PERPLEXED
|
ROLE: Ticukapelli |
| 1953 |
Bolton Little Theatre |
THE HOPEFUL TRAVELLERS
|
ROLE: Demon |
| 1953 |
Bolton Little Theatre |
THE WONDER HAT
|
ROLE: Pierrot |
| 1953 |
Hopefield Miniature Theatre |
THE BEAUTY CONTEST
|
ROLE: Rosie |
| 1954 |
Bolton School |
THE STARS BOW DOWN
|
ROLE: Asnath, the High Priest's daughter |
| 1954 |
Hopefield Miniature Theatre |
DOCTOR FAUSTUS (1954)
|
ROLE: Wagner |
| 1955 |
Bolton School |
THE STORY OF RAHMAN
|
ROLE: Attendant |
| 1955 |
Bolton School |
OTHELLO (1955)
|
ROLE: Montano |
| 1956 |
Bolton School |
HENRY IV PART 2 (1956)
|
ROLE: Prince Hal |
| 1956 |
Chorley Old Road Congregational Hall |
ESCAPADE
|
ROLE: L W Daventry |
| 1957 |
Bolton School |
HENRY V (1957)
|
ROLE: Henry V |
| 1958 |
Bolton School |
THE STRONG ARE LONELY
|
ROLE: Alfonso Fernandez |
| 1958 |
Bolton Little Theatre |
TWELFTH NIGHT (1958)
|
ROLE: Sebastian |
| 1958 |
Bolton Middle School |
MACBETH, ACT V (1958)
|
DIRECTOR: Ian McKellen ROLE: Producer/Director |