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Warren Mitchell |
'I'm off', says angry actor as concert season approaches
Kenwood concerts: ‘They’re
just noise pollution’, says TV’s Alf Garnett
ACTOR Warren Mitchell has attacked Kenwood chiefs for staging
pop concerts which he says are driving him out of his Highgate
home.
Mr Mitchell, 80, famous for playing Cockney misery Alf Garnett
in BBC comedy ‘Til Death do us part, told the New Journal
he would be leaving his Stormont Road home this summer to escape
the din.
He said: “They used to be beautiful classical music concerts.
You could listen to a fine orchestra playing fine music. Now
it’s just an organised piss-up. It’s turned into a
money-making exercise.”
This year marks the 55th anniversary of the music concerts organised
by International Management Group (IMG) on behalf of House guardians,
English Heritage.
Artists confirmed for this summer include former boy-band star
Ronan Keating, Abba tribute band Bjorn Again and singer Art
Garfunkel. The series of ten evening concerts start on June
24.
Mr Mitchell, who said he had been “unutterably depressed’’
by this year’s line-up said: “We are planning to move
away over the summer. It’s awful – you can not sit
in the garden at all and simply contemplate nature.
“As well as the noise from the concerts, there’s some
terrible MC making inane comments disturbing the peace. It’s
noise pollution.”
Mr Mitchell added that noise from the firework displays accompanying
the concerts had forced him to give his dog tranquillisers.
He said: “Our little dog gets very trembly and has to hide
under the bed. I asked the organisers last year why they had
to have fireworks at all and they said it was one of the main
attractions. I asked them why they didn’t just get rid
of the music and have the fireworks instead.”
But Kenwood bosses who have already come under fire for applying
to increase sound limits
from 50 decibels to 55 decibels in Fitzroy Park said they were
taking extra measures this year to reduce noise from the concerts.
A spokeswoman from English Heritage said: “We are moving
the entire stage on to a floating pontoon in the pond to improve
the music for the audience and for residents.
“We have applied to increase the sound limit at one of
the four monitoring sites so it is at the same level as the
other sites. We fully expect the sound to be within these limits.”
She added: “The concerts are a Kenwood tradition and they
give a huge amount of pleasure to a lot of people, including
many residents. They also provide an important source of income
for us to preserve Kenwood House and the landscape.” |
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