'An Audience with C S Lewis' is a play I have now performed several times, including the Farnham Literary Festival in 2025, where the audience is invited to join 'Jack' Lewis in his study at 'The Kilns', his home in the village of Headington on the outskirts of the City of Oxford.
In my childhood, I had read and greatly enjoyed the Narnia Chronicles. However, it was not until I played the part of 'Jack' Lewis in an amateur production of 'Shadowlands', that I really began to understand the man. The most astonishing realisation was that he was a household name, both here and in the United States, even before the first of the Narnia chronicles, 'The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe,' was published.
In this performance I explore his:-
earlier fame before the Narnia Chronicles
early childhood and the traumatic loss of his mother
close relationship with his brother Warnie, and the imaginary worlds that they created together
life as an Oxford don
journey back to Christianity, and his Christian writings
involvement with the 'Inklings', and especially JRR Tolkien and 'Lord of the Rings'
decision towards the end of his career to write children's stories
meeting late in life with Joy Gresham
I intersperse the performance with selected readings from 'The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe', his poetry, and 'The Screwtape Letters'.