Meet The Committee

Chairman & Treasurer, Actor

Phillip was a founder member of Wychwood Players, appearing as the eponymous Gosforth in Gosforth’s Fete by Alan Ayckbourn in the old Beaconsfield Hall in 1997.

His lifelong love of amateur dramatics was kindled when, aged 17, he appeared in the leading role of Thomas a Becket in a school production of Murder in the Cathedral, by T S Elliot. Subsequently, over the years he performed in productions too numerous to mention with drama groups in Naphill, Nr High Wycombe, Colchester and Farnham, before moving to the Wychwoods in the 1990s.

Phillip joined the committee of Wychwood Players, holding the position of Treasurer for several years, before becoming Secretary, and then again resuming the post of Treasurer in 2012. In 2020 Phillip succeeded Dudley Thompson as Chairman, and, in the absence of a willing volunteer, he also retains the Treasurership. For many years he has also organised the bar for the Group’s productions.

Having appeared in numerous plays with Wychwood Players it is not easy to select highlights, but the part of failed schoolmaster Crocker Harris in Rattigan’s The Browning Version was a particularly favourite role in 2006. Other memorable productions were Outside Edge, Oh What a Lovely War, Hay Fever, Neville’s Island, Visiting Hour, Sandcastles, Flint Street Nativity, Table Manners, Toad of Toad Hall, Hound of the Baskervilles, Allo Allo (as Herr Flick), Dangerous Corner, Wuthering Heights, Vicar of Dibley, Blackadder (as Captain Darling), Laburnum Grove and several pantomimes, including two turns as the pantomime dame in Dick Whittington & his Puss in Boots (2001) and Treasure Island (2007).

Committee & Sound

I've been in the professional audio business for over thirty years in studio, broadcast and live sound. I've lived in the area for longer.

I was snared into the Wychwood Players via my youngest son who was in the BODS group run by a certain Mandyrae Jessey When he told her I was 'in sound' Mandy asked me to help out with the Players and run the sound effects and music for what turned out to be an award-winning production for the Players - Another Fine Mess. I've been involved in amateur theatre all my life so this was a welcome introduction to a wonderful group and immense fun. I love all things audio, so one of the highlights for me was being able to adapt, produce, record, edit and mix our first audio drama - Resting - and publish it as a podcast. It is my hope we can do more. I also enjoy video editing too so I've been introduced to the Players' extensive archive and I've been putting together showcases and created our YouTube channel.

Being on the Committee gives me a chance to give something back to the Players and contribute to the community. It is a privilege be part of a friendly and professional team whose common purpose is to bring people entertainment.

Actress

Rachel came late to the stage but she has loved every minute of it. Since joining Wychwood Players, Rachel has taken roles in The Three Musketeers, Dangerous Corner, The Vicar of Dibley, Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime and But Yesterday.

Actress

Rose has been a member of the Players since 2002. Her interest in drama stemmed from primary school when a visionary schoolmaster abridged ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ for his class and at the age of 11 Rose played Helena.

In her 20s Rose acted with the Nortonians at Chipping Norton and also did musicals with the Operatic Society there. Since joining the Wychwood Players there have been many exciting roles: O What A Lovely War; Hay Fever; Blithe Spirit; The Hound of the Baskervilles; Table Manners; Time of My Life; Sandcastles; ‘Allo ‘Allo and several pantomimes including occasions when she performed with her son and grandson on stage. She even played the Dame one year! A highlight for Rose was that of playing housekeeper Nelly Dean in Wuthering Heights, her favourite book.

She loves the challenge of learning lines and the tight-knit group that is formed when a play is cast. Rose is equally happy helping backstage or making costumes or serving in the bar.

All of these jobs have to be done!

Actress

Since taking my first steps on stage at university, I have loved stage and screen acting and worked with many groups across the country whenever I moved.

I joined Wychwood Players in 2008 and was lucky enough to be invited to act in several productions, including Humble Boy, Deathtrap, Laburnum Grove, Table Manners, The Ghost Train, Blithe Spirit, Men of the World and the online play Something for the Weekend, during lockdown.

In 2022 I was awarded Best Supporting Actor at Henley Festival for Late Entry by David Tristram, a play I truly loved being part of. I am also a member of Spotlight and have acted professionally on stage, film, radio, voice overs, multimedia and also live events including murder mystery evenings.

I am a regular guest speaker performing humorous poetry for WI, U3A, Probus and other networking groups. Recently I started performing with Springline Productions for radio and online plays - great fun and no lines to learn!

I fell in love with being on stage at school but was never able to pursue this as an actor. Performing however is in my blood: my grandmother toured all over the country as a chorus girl when she was younger and my cousin who studied at The Royal School of Ballet, performed for the Queen and toured the world as a dancer.

Over the years I have been in several bands as a singer, so I have performed on stage - my biggest crowd being 400 people at Birmingham Metropole. Hitherto my career has been in marketing and events, so organising and promoting are also second nature to me.

I have always loved the theatre and go as often as I can, but have only recently taken up acting - and I instantly fell in love with it again! Wychwood Players are such a welcoming group and the camaraderie during rehearsals and performing the finished piece feels like gaining a new family.

Having been active with various drama groups as a youth I went through a hiatus while raising a family before a chance encounter with a neighbour in the cheese aisle at Tesco’s. “Do you fancy a bit part as a British airman in “Allo, Allo” ?“ she asked. With the promise of a ginger moustache and that classic economic comedy line “Hello” how could I resist an offer like that! I was hooked again.

Since then, I’ve been actively involved in local drama both in my native Cheshire and since moving to Oxfordshire in 2020  with Wychwood Players. Aside from acting and occasionally directing I’m a keen designer and love working on the ‘look and feel’ of our productions. There’s something rather special about transforming a village hall badminton court into a live theatre.