ENNISKILLEN actor Adrian Dunbar was awarded the ‘Freedom of the City of London’ to recognise his commitments to the arts and his performances on the West End Theatre.
The local man, who rose to prominence following his casting as Superintendent Ted Hastings in BBC thriller ‘Line of Duty’, has been playing a key role in ‘Kiss Me, Kate’ at the Barbican Theatre.
Hundreds of people recently turned out to the London theatre to see Adrian in action and the play was such a hit that it was confirmed it will be turned into a movie, in a major boost for the actor.
The Enniskillen Gaels GAA ambassador now joins a distinguished list of people to be awarded the ‘Freedom of the City of London’, which has been running since the early 1200s.
Chairman of the City of London Corporation’s Freedom Applications Committee, Alderman Russell, nominated Adrian for the accolade, in recognition of his success on the West End.
“One of the City of London’s ancient traditions, the Freedom is believed to have begun in 1237 and enabled recipients to carry out their trade,” he told ‘My London News’.
“As well as being nominated for, or applying for, the Freedom, it is also offered by the City of London Corporation to individuals as a way of paying tribute to their outstanding contribution to London or public life, or to celebrate a very significant achievement.”
Earlier this year, the award-winning actor was recently presented with a prestigious fellowship award from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London.
Adrian has been juggling his acting commitments on stage with his TV duties, playing the main character ‘Ridley’ in the popular ITV drama which returned for a second series recently.
The ‘Kiss Me, Kate’ film is set to be released on Monday, November 17.