A Special Tribute to Roger Martin (1952 – 2026)
He was not on the list.
We are very sad to share the news that the founding chair of Eastside Educational Trust, Roger Martin passed away on 14th July 2026.
Matt Lane, Eastside CEO/Artistic Director writes: Roger led the board of trustees as chair from 7th May 1999 to 30th October 2012. He continued to serve as Vice President of Eastside supporting Eastside’s Founding Directors Chris Enticott and Rakhee Jasani until 19th February 2017 completing a brilliant 18 years of service to the organisation. His contribution did not stop there.
When I was appointed to Eastside in 2017, as a new first time CEO/Artistic Director, Roger continued to correspond with me offering encouragement, support, ideas and enthusiasm. In addition, he delivered a passionate speech at Eastside’s 25th anniversary celebration event (August 2019) and continued to show interest in all of Eastside’s activities.
Throughout his life, Roger worked as a professional actor and theatre director to significant acclaim. His love of the arts and belief in the power of creativity for all, shone vibrantly. On behalf of the whole Eastside organisation we would like to offer our most sincere gratitude for all that he has done over so many years. Every ongoing Eastside project reflects his service and legacy.
Chris Enticott & Rakhee Jasani, Eastside’s, co-founding Directors write: Eastside has sadly lost its founding Chair and a passionate champion. Roger Martin was Eastside’s Chair of Trustees for thirteen years. His deep wisdom, strong principles, encouragement and unwavering belief in Eastside were instrumental in shaping the charity from its earliest days. But over the years, Roger became far more than the Chair. He became our mentor, our advocate and above all, a really dear friend.
Roger was always “Chair” – never “Chairman”. He gently but firmly rejected language that suggested inequality. It wasn’t a grand gesture; it was simply who he was. He believed that words mattered because people mattered, and that quiet integrity ran through everything he did.
Roger wasn’t interested in telling us what we should do. Instead, he encouraged us to trust our instincts, our creativity and our ambition. Whenever we came to him with ideas that felt impossibly bold, he didn’t suggest we scale them back. Instead, he encouraged us to go for it. He championed our ideas and never once let us believe they were beyond our reach. Looking back now, we realise how extraordinary that was.
Roger was also an exceptional orator. He spoke publicly about Eastside many times, including at Eastside’s tenth anniversary celebration in the House of Commons. His speeches were never ceremonial, Roger spoke with warmth, eloquence and conviction. He knew the organisation inside out, understood why the work mattered. He had a remarkable ability to capture the spirit of Eastside and communicate it in a way that moved everyone listening.
Roger leaves behind an extraordinary legacy. His unwavering belief in others changed countless lives. He championed artists and believed passionately in their power to inspire and motivate young people. Likewise he believed in the transformative power of the arts on young lives and in the creative opportunities that Eastside provides.
We will miss Roger deeply, remembering his generosity, wisdom and wit with great love and affection. We send our sincere condolences to his wife Sarah and to all his family and close friends.
James Peterson, former Trustee and Chair of Trustees (2011 – 2020) writes: Roger brought the theatre to Eastside in every way – a passionate trustee, a wonderful advocate of the performing arts and a warm, kind and thoughtful man. He took me under his wing when I first started as the new Treasurer, bringing much needed continuity and stability at a time of change. He made sure he had time for Eastside, even whilst on tour or between rehearsals! He will be missed by all.
He was a British actor and theatre director whose acting career spanned four decades, during which time he appeared in the theatre and films, while his television roles included sitcoms and serious dramas.
Martin was born in Burslem in Stoke-on-Trent in 1952. His father was a Physics teacher, and his mother a telephonist. His maternal grandfather was a specialist gentleman’s outfitter, the sign above his shop announcing him as a ‘Hatter and Hosier’. Martin's paternal grandfather worked in the pottery industry initially and ended his working life as a rent collector for the local council.
He attended Wolstanton County Grammar School, where his interest in drama was first awakened when he took leading roles in school plays for 8 consecutive years under the direction of his English Master, Gordon Renshaw, who instilled in Martin a love for drama. He also acted in Gilbert and Sullivan productions under his Music Master, John Fenna. During the late 1960s and early 1970s he was the bass guitarist and vocalist in a band called 'Gollum' which played in and around the Potteries.
Martin trained as an actor at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and made his professional debut in his home town of Stoke-on-Trent, acting from 1974 to 1976 with the Victoria Theatre Company under its founder and Artistic Director Peter Cheeseman.
Martin's first television appearances were in children's programmes, including Watch and Play Away, later making his prime-time television debut in an episode of Potter (1980) which starred Arthur Lowe. He went on to appear in Holding the Fort (1980), a BBC production of The Merchant of Venice (1980), The Professionals (1980), Yes Minister (1981), The Setbacks (1981), Angels (1982), and In Sickness and in Health (1985).[1] He played Alan Medford in seven episodes of Terry and June between 1980 and 1987.
Further television appearances included Roger Duff in the final series of No Place Like Home (1987), Bread (1991), Anglo-Saxon Attitudes (1992), Minder (1993), Resnick: Rough Treatment (1993), Anna Lee (1994), Shine on Harvey Moon (1995), Call Red (1996), Jack and Jeremy's Real Lives (1996), Does China Exist? (1997), The Jump (1998), EastEnders (1999), Midsomer Murders (2002), My Dad's the Prime Minister (2003), The Brief (2004), 55 Degrees North (2004), Judge John Deed (2005), Casualty (2007), Doctors (2006-9), and Trial & Retribution (2008).[1]
His film appearances included O Lucky Man! (1973) and Britannia Hospital (1982).
Actor
Doctors (2000)
Doctors
4.6
TV Series
Barry LundBob KennedyKenneth Pickles
2007–2019
Trial & Retribution (1997)
Trial & Retribution
7.6
TV Series
Dr. Julian Holmes
2008
Casualty (1986)
Casualty
6.2
TV Series
Benjamin Knight
2007
Martin Shaw in Judge John Deed (2001)
Judge John Deed
7.7
TV Series
Sir Peter Tufton
2005
Dervla Kirwan and Don Gilet in 55 Degrees North (2004)
55 Degrees North
7.9
TV Series
Thomas Henderson
2004
Alan Davies in The Brief (2004)
The Brief
7.4
TV Series
Clerk of the Court
2004
My Dad's the Prime Minister (2003)
My Dad's the Prime Minister
6.9
TV Series
2nd MP
2003
Annette Badland, Neil Dudgeon, and Nick Hendrix in Midsomer Murders (1997)
Midsomer Murders
7.9
TV Series
George Woodard
2002
EastEnders (1985)
EastEnders
4.8
TV Series
Mr. BaileySid
1989–1999
The Jump (1998)
The Jump
6.1
TV Series
Assistant Governor
1998
Does China Exist?
TV Movie
1997
Gareth Hale and Norman Pace in Hale and Pace (1986)
Hale and Pace
7.7
TV Series
1997
Brookside (1982)
Brookside
6.6
TV Series
Kenny RobertsTom Evans
1991–1996
Jack and Jeremy's Real Lives (1996)
Jack and Jeremy's Real Lives
7.6
TV Series
1996
Rough Justice (1982)
Rough Justice
8.6
TV Series
D.S. John Robbins
1996
Call Red (1996)
Call Red
5.6
TV Series
Frank Bettany
1996
Kenneth Cranham in Shine on Harvey Moon (1982)
Shine on Harvey Moon
7.5
TV Series
Cedric
1995
She's Out (1995)
She's Out
7.6
TV Mini Series
DS Lenton
1995
Imogen Stubbs in Anna Lee (1994)
Anna Lee
7.3
TV Series
Ken Daniels
1994
Kate Winslet, Michelle Cattini, Carol Harrison, and Ray Winstone in Get Back (1992)
Get Back
6.2
TV Series
Policeman
1993
Resnick: Rough Treatment (1993)
Resnick: Rough Treatment
7.2
TV Movie
Roger Deleval
1993
Jennifer Tilly, Denise Crosby, Fisher Stevens, Terrence 'T.C.' Carson, Leland Crooke, Kim Myers, Ivory Ocean, Lara Piper, Geno Silva, Brian Thompson, and Michael Covert in Key West (1993)
Key West
8.2
TV Series
Mac
1993
Jonny Lee Miller in Bad Company (1993)
Bad Company
7.8
TV Movie
D.S. Lycett
1993
George Cole in Minder (1979)
Minder
7.8
TV Series
Marks
1993
Anglo Saxon Attitudes (1992)
Anglo Saxon Attitudes
6.6
TV Mini Series
Training Manager
1992
Love Hurts (1992)
Love Hurts
7.3
TV Series
Minicab Driver
1992
Jean Boht, Nick Conway, Ronald Forfar, Peter Howitt, Victor McGuire, and Jonathon Morris in Bread (1986)
Bread
6.3
TV Series
Producer
1991
Screen Two (1984)
Screen Two
6.7
TV Series
Geoff
1991
Eddie Large and Syd Little in The Little and Large Show (1978)
The Little and Large Show
5.1
TV Series
1988–1990
Jasper Carrott in Carrott Confidential (1987)
Carrott Confidential
7.5
TV Series
Various Characters
1987–1988
No Place Like Home (1983)
No Place Like Home
6.8
TV Series
Roger
1987
Terry and June (1979)
Terry and June
6.4
TV Series
AlanCB Radio Voice
1980–1987
Sara Griffiths in Late Expectations (1987)
Late Expectations
6.4
TV Series
Roger
1987
In Sickness and in Health (1985)
In Sickness and in Health
7.0
TV Series
the Salesman
1985
Julie Dawn Cole and Janina Faye in Angels (1975)
Angels
6.6
TV Series
Eddie BurrellEddie Burnell
1982
Britannia Hospital (1982)
Britannia Hospital
6.2
Demonstrator
1982
The Setbacks
TV Series
Gordon
1981
Nigel Hawthorne, Paul Eddington, and Derek Fowlds in Yes Minister (1980)
Yes Minister
8.6
TV Series
BBC Producer
1981
Lewis Collins, Gordon Jackson, and Martin Shaw in The Professionals (1977)
The Professionals
8.0
TV Series
George Gorton
1980
Warren Mitchell in The Merchant of Venice (1980)
The Merchant of Venice
7.2
TV Movie
Leonardo
1980
Peter Davison and Patricia Hodge in Holding the Fort (1980)
Holding the Fort
6.5
TV Series
2nd Soldier
1980
Arthur Lowe in Potter (1979)
Potter
7.1
TV Series
North Face Pop Group Member
1980
The BBC Television Shakespeare (1978)
The BBC Television Shakespeare
8.0
TV Series
Leonardo
1978–1985
Writer
Out & About with Roger Martin (1991)
Out & About with Roger Martin
TV Series
Writer
1991
Self
Dave Allen - 1986 New Years Eve Special
TV Special
Self
1986
Dave Allen - Christmas Special 1984
TV Special
Self
1984
Toni Arthur and Brian Cant in Play Away (1971)
Play Away
7.5
TV Series
Self
1980–1981
Archive Footage
Dave Allen in Dave Allen: The Immaculate Selection (2014)
Dave Allen: The Immaculate Selection
8.2
TV Movie
Various (archive footage)
2014
Dave Allen in Vintage Dave Allen (1996)
Vintage Dave Allen
8.6
Video
Various (archive footage)
1996
No comments:
Post a Comment