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Barnes in Commonthe magazine of Churches Together in Barnes
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Bill Wiesener by Susan Gibson, with help from Kim Miller and
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It is with great sadness that we tell you that Bill Wiesener died on 23 May, age 72. Bill had lived in Barnes for many years and was particularly well known for his creative and imaginative Christmas dramas as part of Christmas worship, involving young people from all the different churches in Barnes during the 1970s and 1980s.
He was born in Belfast on 4 June 1933. He became interested in drama and acting at school and when he went to Belfast Technical College he joined the drama society. There he met Beth Surgenor who was the leading light of the society. He started his theatrical career in the local Rep in Bangor. Later he moved to mainland Britain (he "ran away from home" and his mother was expecting him home for tea!), acting in such places as Cleethorpes, Scarborough, Peterborough, Morecambe and the Oxford Playhouse – indeed all over the country!
Bill and Beth married in 1958 and their daughter Kim was born in 1960. Many summer seasons and tours kept him away from home a lot of the time. The family settled in Barnes in 1964 and they all went to Barnes Methodist Church.
His Nativity plays at the Methodist Church were outstanding: many will recall Christmas in the Market Place, The Shepherd's Tale, Joe Carpenter and Son. Of them all, perhaps Bamboo Nativity and Circus Nativity stand out. Bamboo Nativity started in complete darkness and then through a door came a large orange 'ball' – a paper lamp on a long bamboo cane, nodding from side to side and leading the Magi to Bethlehem. The congregation knew they were in for something very special. (Bill said himself that a week before they were to stage Circus Nativity he suddenly realised that half the cast were from St Osmund's and would they be allowed to take part in an act of Methodist worship. But many phone calls later they were able to breathe again and celebrate Christmas 1973).
At the same time as he was giving his energy to the youth of Barnes he was continuing his professional career, appearing in the West End in The Cherry Orchard, The Judge, The Plumber's Progress and in the long-running musical Oh, Kay! at the Westminster Theatre. Although Bill's main interest was theatre he played a number of roles in television, including episodes of Dr Who and The Last of the Mohicans.
After Beth's death in 1992 Bill developed a long working relationship with the playwright David Hill, who was also the Superintendent Minister of the Methodist Church in Poplar. Bill had directed a tour of Hill's Never Stand Still in 1988, about John and Charles Wesley, previewed at Barnes Methodist Church, which was presented at churches and other venues around the country, including Wesley's Chapel in City Road. Together they founded NSS Productions and The Emery Theatre in Poplar on the site of the Queen Victoria Seamen's Rest. David and Bill produced many plays at The Emery Theatre and several of those productions went on to tour churches in the UK. The pantomimes were especially close to their heart, introducing thousands of children from the East End to the theatre. In 1993 Bill toured with Woodbine Willie in which he starred as 'Woodbine Willie' – the Rev. Studdert Kennedy. Most recently in 2003 Never Stand Still went on tour in the USA (with Fergus O'Kelly singing Charles Wesley's hymns).
Bill was Artistic Director at The Emery Theatre until his death at the
Derbyshire Royal Infirmary in Derby, which is where his daughter, son-in-law
and grandson now live.