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James points to his name in the credits

Right next to the hustle and bustle of Leicester Square is the Wyndham’s Theatre. It’s small for the West End, but plush and prestigious.

Compared to some of the more lurid theatre advertisements in the area, the posters around it are subdued, classy and powerful.

They tell you that Dame Judi Dench is about to begin her run there as Madame de Sade; when Sir Derek Jacobi finishes in Twelfth Night. Jude Law will be there later this year as Hamlet.

James Howard

And in this august company I found James Hunt, former television news reader in Jersey. He’s billed as James Howard, which is his stage name.

Since leaving Jersey, James has enjoyed remarkable success. He studied at the traditional Bristol Old Vic drama school, and has worked steadily ever since; no mean feat for an actor.

James in the shared dressing room

You may have seen him in Emmerdale, Spooks or even Midsomer Murders; but it’s the stage work which has really brought him artistic success.

At the Wyndham’s he has various roles in Twelfth night with Sir Derek Jacobi; before that he acted with Kenneth Branagh in Ivanov, and has also appeared at the National Theatre.

Royal Shakespeare Company

But the biggest news as Twelfth Night closes to sell-out audiences is that he’s been offered a two and a half year contract with the Royal Shakespeare Company, to prepare some new productions at its headquarters in Stratford.

“It’s a dream come true for me”, he told me in the shared dressing room festooned with good luck cards, costumes and food wrappers.

“I played so many roles in amateur productions in Jersey but always wanted to do it for a living. I’ve been very lucky though, and have a very understanding wife!”

The day I saw James was the final performance of Twelfth Night. As he showed me out of the stage door there was a queue of people snaking around the side of the theatre.

James standing by the Twelth Night poster

I said I was surprised that there were still tickets left for the play, which had been very well reviewed. It turned out there weren’t.

The hundred or so people I saw were queuing for returns, in the slim hope that they might get a last minute seat.

I had been lucky and seen it some weeks before; James was confident and assured in his roles, and certainly didn’t look out of place next to the household names he was on stage with.

The Odd Life

Of course the life of an actor is an unpredictable one, and James has had to travel not only across the country but also across Europe making TV shows and adverts.

As we chatted in front of the wonderful, deep stage of the Wyndham’s, he said something which gave me the title for this series on Jerseys West End successes.

As he reflected on his good fortune, but also of the uncertainty of his chosen career, he looked out over the stage with a wistful smile on his face. “Yes”, he said “it’s an odd life but the joys that you get from doing it when it’s good are worth it.”