Much Ado About Dying screening arrives in Thirsk

When Max May volunteered for a befriending service while living at the capital, little could he have known how being paired with housebound thespian David Gale would impact his life.

Their connection sparked a chain of events which has led to the screening of the comedic, warm and moving film with a special audience with the director next week.

Max, the former CEO of Rural Arts in Thirsk explained more:

“I was living in London and volunteered for a befriending service for older LGBT+ people. I was paired with David because we both worked in the arts. By the time I met him, David was in his mid 80s and housebound. We talked about everything - his career, my life. It was very interesting to discuss similarities and differences, both in terms of being gay and being in the arts.”

Max returned to North Yorkshire and shortly afterwards David passed away. He thought of him often, but only discovered the film by David’s nephew Simon when he stumbled across an article in The Guardian. But in the meantime, the joy and exuberance David had displayed had such a profound effect on Max that it changed the way he thought about ageing and led him to develop creative ageing programmes at Rural Arts.

“My time with David really informed the programmes I developed while I was at Rural Arts. Two programs, one which is a creative wellbeing activity in village halls for older people called Heart and Craft. The other is activities in the houses of housebound or in care homes called ArtBeat.

“My experience with David led me to shape those and fundraise for them and now they're still going and having an impact on people's lives. David's legacy is in this film but those programmes are also his legacy because he's inspired them.”

The film follows David’s life with Simon, over four remarkably eventful years he spent caring for his uncle until the latter’s death in early 2020. It has won many awards and plaudits and is both an unflinching and uplifting look at ageing and the care system.

Rural Arts’ current lead on Creative Ageing, Julian Hartley said: “It’s wonderful to be able to show this film at Rural Arts. David was such an inspiration to the work that we do and which has continued to develop with a positive impact on many people's lives.”

The concerns of older people are becoming increasingly high on the agenda for local services, politicians and authorities. North Yorkshire has a population that's ageing rapidly with double the national average of people over the age 65 and Max hopes the screening will prove inspiring for caregivers as well as those thinking about their future needs.

“Showing this film is also a bit of a clarion call, really, to say we need to support our voluntary organisations to be there for our older people who need our support and services,” he said.

Much Ado About Dying is at Rural Arts, Thirsk on Thursday, September 26 from 7.30pm. £9 – £11. It will be followed with a Q&A with the filmmaker.