Kathryn Hunter and Winsome Pinnock Announced as New RADA Honorary Fellows

Kathryn Hunter and Winsome Pinnock have been made Honorary Fellows of RADA, recognising contributions to the theatre industry in the fields of academia, playwriting, acting, physical theatre and directing.

The role celebrates figures who have made significant impact and contribution to RADA, to training or to the wider industry. Fellows will be invited to take an active role in the life of the Academy including, where possible, meeting and working with current students.

In 2018, RADA revived the tradition of Honorary Fellows and has since awarded Fellowships to Thelma Holt CBE, Cicely Berry CBE, Glenda Jackson CBE, Mona Hammond OBE, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Stephen Sondheim and Francine Watson Coleman.

We are delighted that Kathryn Hunter and Winsome Pinnock will join RADA in this capacity. They will be officially appointed at RADA’s graduation ceremony on Saturday 15 July.

Kathryn Hunter is an American-born British award-winning actress known for her extraordinary physically transformative performances and directing for stage and screen. She is a RADA graduate, and her extensive international career spans over four decades with work across London and the UK, New York, Florida, Greece, Tokyo and Hong Kong. Hunter is a long-term associate of Théâtre de Complicité, with recent productions including Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead (2023). Her performance with Complicité in The Visit won her an Olivier Award in 1991. In 2017 Hunter directed Untouchable by Peter Oswald which premiered at the RADA Festival with Jatinder Verma as Artistic Associate.

Winsome Pinnock is a multi-award winning Black British playwright and an influential voice in contemporary British theatre. Pinnock is noted as the first Black British female writer to have a play produced by The National Theatre. Recent major awards include the Alfred Fagon Award (2018) and the Windham-Campbell Prize for Drama (2022). Pinnock has made significant contributions to the dramatic landscape through her powerful and thought-provoking plays exploring themes of race, identity, and social justice shedding light on the experiences of marginalised communities. Her groundbreaking plays, most recently Rockets and Blue Lights (2021), have pushed boundaries and sparked important conversations, making her an instrumental figure in promoting diversity and inclusion within the arts.

RADA Principal Niamh Dowling said, “The Honorary Fellows are a wonderful opportunity for RADA to celebrate, connect and expand our community with artists and makers who push at the boundaries and represent excellence in a range of disciplines.”

Marcus Ryder MBE, Chair of RADA Council added that, “I am delighted that we are awarding Kathryn Hunter and Winsome Pinnock RADA Honorary Fellowships. Both are figures who have extraordinary outlooks and global perspectives that will continue to widen the lens of RADA’s training.”