John Anthony Bell (born 1 November 1940) is an Australian actor, theatre director and theatre manager. He has been a major influence on the development of Australian theatre in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
Early life
Bell was born 1 November 1940 in Newcastle, New South Wales, to a bank manager father and elocutionist mother. As the oldest child, he grew up alongside three younger sisters and a brother.
At age 9 or 10, he moved with his family to the town of Maitland, New South Wales At school, he studied Shakespeare, where he developed and performed one-man stage shows. At the age of 15, he developed aspirations to become a Shakespearean actor after seeing Laurence Olivier as Henry V on screen.
In 2011, he published the book "On Shakespeare", detailing his thoughts and reminiscences of playing Shakespeare for more than 50 years.
In 2015, at the age of 75, Bell retired from running Bell Shakespeare, handing the reins over to his successor, Peter Evans. He has since engaged as a corporate speaker, performed poetry recitals with pianist Simon Tedeschi and taken on further stage roles, including the title role in The Father with Sydney Theatre Company. Additionally, in his spare time, he started the Bouddi Foundation, based on the NSW central coast, which assists emerging The lectures demonstrate the relevance of Shakespeare's works to today's issues of need for good governance, the danger of political self interest, and the need for gender equality.
Honours and awards
In the 1978 New Year Honours, Bell was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE). In the Queen's Birthday Honours of 1987, he was named a Member of the Order of Australia (AM). In the 2009 Australia Day Honours, he was named an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO).
In 2001 a painting of Bell by artist Nicholas Harding won the Archibald Prize.
In 2003 the Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, presented Bell with the Cultural Leader of the Year Award.
In 2016 he was awarded Australian Humanist of the Year (AHOY).
In 2019 Bell was elected as a fellow of the Royal Society of New South Wales.
His achievements in theatre have been acknowledged by the Universities of Newcastle (1994), Sydney (1996) and New South Wales, all of whom have awarded him honorary Doctor of Letters degrees.
Awards
{|class=wikitable
! Year
! Work
! Award
! Category
! Result
|-
| 1982 || Far East || AFI Awards || Best Actor in a Supporting Role || <br>
|-
| 1989 || John Bell || Mo Awards || Male Supporting Musical Theatre Performer of the Year || <br>
|-
| 2002 || Richard III || Helpmann Awards || Best Male Actor in a Play || <br>
|-
| 2009 || John Bell || Producers and Directors Guild Awards || Lifetime Achievement || <br>
|-
| 2009 || John Bell || Helpmann Awards || JC Williamson Award || <br>
|-
| 2010 || John Bell || Sydney Theatre Awards || Lifetime Achievement || <br>
|-
| 2013 || Henry IV || Helpmann Awards || Best Male Actor in a Play ||
|-
| 2015 || As You Like It || Helpmann Awards || Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role in a Play || <br>
|}
Personal life
Bell attended the University of Sydney with Clive James and Germaine Greer. He is a contemporary and friend of Bruce Beresford (film director, with whom he shared a house and for whom he did some film acting), Ken Horler, Mungo McCallum, Bob Ellis, Richard Wherrett, John Gaden, Laurie Oakes (journalist), and Les Murray (poet).
Bell met Polish-born Australian actress and NIDA graduate Anna Volska in 1963, when they performed in a production of The Cherry Orchard together. Volska followed Bell to the UK when he joined the Royal Shakespeare Company,