Third Man Theatre Company

“Everyone else is asleep.
Not me.
Not you.
Not yet...
No, not yet.”

Botallack O'Clock is a funny, moving and thought­provoking journey into thecreative mind of one of the most unique voices in post­war British art, Roger Hilton CBE.

In 1965, having just represented Britain at the Venice Biennale, Roger Hilton moved wih his family to the Cornish coastal village of Botallack, where his working routine began to break down, mainly as a result of his increasing addiction to alcohol. For the last two years of his life, Hilton took permanently to his bed, where he continued to work, painting over the side of his bed on sheets of paper laid on the floor. A small down­stairs room in his cottage became his bedroom, living space and studio, where Hilton would workthrough the night with only his thoughts, his imaginings and a temperamental radio for company.

Botallack O’Clock depicts a suspended hour of the night where Hilton’s past and present combine with his vivid imagination and tenacious personality, giving a humorous and intriguing insight into the mind of a true artist.

Writer Eddie Elks comments, I'm incredibly excited that Botallack O'Clock is returning to London for a proper run. Roger's thoughts and ideas, much like his paintings, are as relevant and arresting now as they were then. In a letter to his mother, whilst serving in WWII, Roger wondered whether one day his life would be made into a story. I hope he would have approved.

This isn’t the first time that Elks has written a play based about an artist. It was while researching Stalag Happy, based on Sir Terry Frost, that Elks first heard the name Roger Hilton. Hilton’s name kept cropping up in books, interviews and conversations, usually always connected with an entertaining, intriguing and often shocking story. Elks conceived Botallack O’Clock through staying with Hilton’s widow, Rose, and immersing himself in the Cornish countryside, reading Hilton’s letters and interviews.

On its premiere in 2011, Botallack O’Clock was shortlisted for Time Out Fringe Show of the Year and described as: dazzlingly eloquent...Botallack O'Clock is a stunning miniature; surprising, profound and very very funny. Following its UK successes, the show transferred to New York as part of ‘Brits Off Broadway’.