History

On a lovely sunny summer day in 1997 my Mother and I were having a super lunch with Ben Honniball

and Phil Quin in the garden of Gaschés Restaurant at Weybourne when the conversation moved onto

amateur theatricals and Ben and Phil’s involvement with Beccles AmDram group.

Ben told us of all the theatrical productioms he had participated in in London both independently and

with his Bank through to moving to Norfolk and directing the Beccles group where he met Phil.

I told them of my acting at school and taking the LRAM exams up to Gold Medal. My first husband and I

were enticed to join Wymondham Players as the Director remembered my performances at school.

After much chatter about AmDram Ben told us that he and Phil were tired of being weekenders in North

Creake and that they had decided to move from Beccles and live in North Creake, and once they had

settled-in Ben wanted to establish an AmDram group in North Creake.

They were both already friendly with Oliver and Sarah Prince-White and between that lunch at Gaschés

and early Autumn the four of them had met-up, which resulted in Ben calling-by to see Mummy and

telling her that Oliver and Sarah were ‘on board’ re an AmDram group and that as soon as he could

organise a meeting to form a group he’d be in touch with her and me, and as they say ….. ‘the rest is

history’!

The first production by the Creakes Drama Group was in 1998, a pantomime written by Sheila Upjohn

and called “The Fair Maid of Creake” with a cast of North and South Creakians, plus the South Creake WI

and interlopers like me! Ben directed and the Panto was an instant success. Thanks to the involvement

and commitment of Ben and Phil and Oliver and Sarah and a few others in they early years, the CDG

flourished and along the way has garnered many accolades and awards.

Considering that virtually all AmDram groups both here in Norfolk and round the country are in Cities

and Towns it makes the CDG’s contribution to amateur theatre unique, and one that all involved should

be enormously proud to be a part of.

Francesca Makins

CDG Founding Member