2011  Alton Fringe Theatre

A Tribute       by Tim Guilding

As he walked on stage, it was the physical presence that struck you first. Tall, erect, the hint of a military bearing (somewhat appropriate as Fred was a veteran of the Normandy landings) a shock of white hair and, if you were lucky enough to be in the front rows, a characteristic twinkle in the eye. However, it was the voice that will long live in the memory of countless fellow actors and those privileged to be in the audience when Fred Sharples appeared before them. As befits someone who sang with The Emmanuel Singers at Cambridge, Fred understood the power of the human voice and so used every nuance of resonance, tone, pitch and volume in order to communicate the truth behind the character's motivation.

I was directed only once by Fred; in the very first Fringe production, Habeus Corpus by Alan Bennett. Had that first show been a disaster, The Fringe might not be in existence now, twenty years later. He acted with us six times in all, as well as giving us Becket in Murder in the Cathedral and Ralph Nickleby in Nicholas Nickleby, which were part of the Alton Arts Festival. Ever the enthusiast, Fred was a member of Winchester Operatic, Chesil Theatre and Ropley Theatre group, bringing a wealth of knowledge and experience to all of us. We remember him as a sinister MI5 spycatcher in Pack of Lies, a gentle inmate of Home, a convincing Doolittle in Pygmalion and, in his last performance for the Fringe, a wonderfully lyrical Captain Cat in Under Milk Wood.

: so we'll live

And pray, and sing, and tell old tales, and laugh

At gilded butterflies .

King Lear Viii