In December 2021 we very suddenly lost our great friend and founding member of Buxton Film. Keith was both passionate and knowledgeable about film and he has provided much of the creative force behind our programming since we began with a few chairs, a projector and a screen in a pub in 2007. Many of our regular audience will remember his perceptive and funny introductions to our weekly screenings.
It was Keith who discovered that Robert Stevenson, the director of the original Mary Poppins and many other well-known films, was in fact born in Buxton and lived on Park Road as child. Keith went on to research Stevenson’s life and times and was about to start a PhD that would bring together the influences on film making in the 50s and 60s with particular reference to Stevenson and the studios he worked with. In 2019 Keith arranged for the placement of a commemorative plaque to be hung in the Pavilion Gardens in Buxton.
As people who knew Keith will tell you, Buxton Film was just a little of what he did for the town of Buxton. He chaired the Buxton Festival Fringe for many years, established a series of piano recitals in the United Reform Church hall, was a member of the High Peak Theatre Trust board, a Labour councillor and a keen naturalist.
Above all, he cared about and respected people. He has left a huge gap and we all miss his guidance, humour and humanity.