WHEN a theatre director decided to stop shaving until the venue was able to reopen, he had no idea he would still be growing his beard a year on...

Colchester Arts Centre has been closed to the public since last March due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The centre’s director Anthony Roberts initially thought the venue would only be shut for a matter of weeks, so he announced he would stop shaving his face until it reopened.

However, a year down the line Anthony is still growing his beard and has recently been likened to Gandalf from The Lord Of The Rings trilogy.

Gazette:

Before - Anthony freshly shaven before his beard growing 

With the centre not set to reopen until the summer, Anthony is concerned he will soon start looking like a member of the bearded American rock band ZZ Top.

The 60-year-old said: “I thought the centre would only be closed for about three weeks.

“When the theatre closed, it was all very sudden and we were certainly stunned and bewildered.

“I spontaneously decided to stop shaving and publish a poem for each day of the closure.”

As the months went on Anthony said he started to look like Uncle Albert from the hit TV show Only Fools and Horses.

Anthony’s beard is now six-and-a-half inches long, and he feels it has drastically aged him.

He said: “I am 60, but I now look like I am about 97-years-old.

“People mistake me for my mother’s husband when I have met up with her in recent months.

“She’s in her 90s and people think I am of that age too.”

As Colchester Arts Centre is due to remain closed for another few months, Anthony has to be patient and resist the temptation to shave it off.

He hopes it will reopen this summer so live performances can take place safely without social distancing.

He said: “We are too cautious to make any grand statement about reopening just yet.

“We hoped to reopen last autumn and then last Christmas.

“We got right up to the knuckle at Christmas and were ready for our Christmas Carol production, then everything changed with another lockdown.”

Gazette:

As a way of engaging with people throughout the past year Anthony and the centre’s team have been very active on social media.

He added: “If you are creative there are other ways of reaching people.

“We have been sending out poems, and we have live streamed performances by poets and comedians.

“In return people have been sending us poems and exchanging ideas with us.

“The daily poetry project has been a lifeline for engagement.”

Despite the centre taking a huge financial hit for 12 months, Anthony remains optimistic about the venue’s future.

“The future is quite exciting as there will be a re-emergence of artistic work after the pandemic,” he said.

While the centre has been closed work has been carried out behind the scenes to redecorate the venue and add two new bars.