Acting royalty Vanessa Redgrave CBE will be joining former Church of England envoy and Beirut hostage Terry Waite at St Edmundsbury Cathedral raising funds for the Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds.

This fundraising event is being held on Sunday November 1 and will be both a live event and simultaneously streamed via YouTube.

Vanessa Redgrave and Terry Waite will be joined by trumpeter Benjamin Amissah who will open and close the evening.

Hailed as ‘the greatest actress of our time’ by Tennessee Williams, Vanessa Redgrave has made her name on both stage and screen, making her professional stage debut in A Touch of the Sun in 1957. She won an Olivier Award for The Aspern Papers and a Tony Award for Long Day’s Journey into Night. She also received Tony nominations for The Year of Magical Thinking and Driving Miss Daisy. She is a is a six-time Oscar nominee, winning for Julia.

Her narration of Call the Midwife has brought her voice to millions. She recently appeared in The Inheritance in the West End for which she was nominated for a 2019 Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role.

Her friend Terry Waite hit the headlines when he was dispatched to Beirut by the Archbishop of Canterbury to negotiate the release of hostages and was taken prisoner and kept in an underground cell for five years from 1987 to 1991.

Emma Suckling, head of development, at Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds, said: “We are so grateful to Vanessa Redgrave and Terry Waite for giving their time to support the theatre and we offer our grateful thanks to all at St Edmundsbury Cathedral for allowing us to hold this event at their beautiful venue whilst we wait to re-open ours.”

Robin Jackson, director of sponsors Churchgates, stressed the importance of theatre in the life of the town. “The Theatre Royal is the hub of our community here in Bury St Edmunds and beyond and the people within have shown great positivity, innovation and resilience during such difficult times for the Arts World. We are delighted to support and promote such a wonderful gem, and look forward to all the fantastic events they are planning.”

The event will be socially distanced and tickets are for a whole pew which can seat up to six people. Each pew has at least a two-metre space clear around it.

Ticket prices for a pew of up to six people priced from £100 to £130 with live stream tickets from £15 to £30. Tickets are on sale the Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds website.