Adrian Lester on Undercover: “It would be so much more powerful if we did all the press for this show without once mentioning colour”
The actor on why he thought about turning down his OBE, the power of saying 'no' and why it's character that matters - not skin colour - even when he's breaking new ground...
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Awarded an OBE for services to drama in 2013, Lester is characteristically thoughtful about the significance of the honour. “I think it crossed my mind not to accept, but as soon as the news hit my mum’s ears, that was it. It made me think, ‘Yeah, actually, there was a reason why my granddad felt “I have part-ownership in the welfare of this country”, because I did my bit for it, and therefore my children and my children should have absolute rights to benefit from it.’
“Two generations later, I think he was right. Without my bloodline, and people like me, and their bloodline, this country would be on its knees. Also the OBE is an acknowledgement of what we [actors] are doing in our field to make this place, where we all live, better. So, yeah, I will say, ‘Thank you very much’ for that kind of acknowledgement.”
If Lester has shied from public debate on diversity issues, his contribution has been profound. Most recently, he took the starring role in a West End revival of his wife Lolita Chakrabarti’s award-winning play, Red Velvet, a deeply political piece about the 19th-century black Shakespearean actor Ira Aldridge. Undercover is another milestone on the road. On the basis of being the change you want to see, Lester has changed more than most. There’s more than one way of smashing a brick.
Undercover begins on Sunday 9pm on BBC1
