Nicolas Ridley
ACTOR, SOLDIER, PLAYWRIGHT, FATHER; A personal portrait of Dad’s Army’s Private Godfrey
As a young man, Arnold Ridley was best known as the author of the
classic comedy thriller, The Ghost Train. In old age, he played the much-loved Private Godfrey in television’s Dad’s Army. In his talk, Arnold’s son, Nicolas, paints an affectionate picture of a truly remarkable man who lived an extraordinary life. The talk will include readings from Godfrey’s Ghost, Nicolas’s book about his father, and will be followed by a question-and-answer session.
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Budleigh Salterton Literary Festival Appearance
N.B. All dates / times are provisional and subject to final confirmation
| Date: | to be confirmed |
| Time: | to be confirmed |
| Place: | to be confirmed |
| Tickets: | £ to be confirmed |
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About Nicolas Ridley
To everyone’s considerable relief, Nicolas Ridley did not follow in his parents’ footsteps and go on the stage. From his father and mother he inherited several ‘tricks of the trade’ but neither their looks nor their talent, and any lingering theatrical ambitions he may secretly have harboured were blighted by an inexplicable tendency, while performing, to adopt an ersatz Welsh accent and waddle about like a poorly-upholstered duck. Instead he became a random traveller, an uncertain teacher and an accidental publisher. He currently lives in London where he writes, very slowly, under different names.
Godfrey’s Ghost is, at its heart, the story of a father written by his son. As a young man, Arnold Ridley was chiefly known as the author of the long-running comedy thriller, The Ghost Train. Today he is remembered for his television performances as Private Godfrey, the oldest member of the Dad’s Army platoon. But Army came towards the close of a long life, and although Arnold Ridley was Private Godfrey, Private Godfrey was not Arnold Ridley.
From humble beginnings living above the family boot-shop in Bath, through the horrors of the Great War, to the life of a celebrated playwright in London’s West End. From unprecedented success and sudden wealth to unforeseen disaster and financial ruin. From the nightmare of another war through painful years of struggle and obscurity to a new, late-flowering fame in a television classic.
Anecdotal, engaging and truthful, Godfrey’s Ghost is an affectionate – and often moving – portrait of a remarkable man who, faced with more than his fair share of life’s vicissitudes, through love, courage and the kind of well-grounded philosophy that doesn’t recognise itself as such, lived his life valiantly and well.
This is Budleigh Salterton's second literary festival.
