IT’S a bit strange finding a picture of well-known actor Hugh Bonneville in his early days – especially as back then he was known as ‘Richard’.

Famous all over the world now for playing the part of Lord Grantham in the smash hit television show Downtown Abbey, Hugh first started out treading the boards at the Mercury.

And following the discovery of a collection of old theatre programmes it appears Hugh wasn’t the only big name to feature there.

Gazette:

Lynn Baynton, along with husband Steve, uncovered the boxes of programmes from her uncle’s attic, after he passed away last year.

He was Dennis Thorogood, a long supporter of the Colchester Repertory Theatre Company, which eventually moved to the Mercury’s present site in 1972.

Dennis, who was a project engineer with the GPO for more than 30 years, first started going to the theatre, which was then located at the Albert Hall in the High Street, with his wife Betty back in 1948.

Gazette:

After becoming a founder of the supporters’ club, in 1963 Dennis was asked to join the board of directors for the Colchester Rep, the same year they appointed David Forder as the new theatre manager who would be instrumental in getting the Mercury Theatre built.

Dennis remained on the board until 1990.

As well as the Mercury Theatre’s very first production programme for The Recruiting Officer in the May of that year, Dennis’ collection also includes some other gems.

Such as the programme for When We Are Married back in 1981, which has a certain Martin Clunes in the cast, or the one for the musical Gypsy in 1989 which starred Ruth Madoc but also an entry for a little known actress at the time called Nicola Stapleton.

Gazette:

Hugh Bonneville appeared in several shows at the Mercury with the highlight being his role as Sir Thomas Fairfax in 1989 in a specially commissioned community production about the Siege of Colchester.