“In the long run, it’s not breaking the code that matters – it’s where you go from there. That’s the real problem.”

Alan Turing was the eccentric genius who helped break the complex German Enigma code, playing a major role in the winning of WW II. After the war Turing turned his scientific and mathematical genius to the concept of developing an ‘electronic brain’; the first computer, which lead ultimately to today’s smartphones and tablets.

Meanwhile, in his private life Turing was breaking another code: the taboo of homosexuality. In 1952 he was convicted of the criminal act of gross indecency and sentenced to undergo hormone treatments as part of his rehabilitation.  He committed suicide in 1954.

Turing spent his childhood in St. Leonards, living at Baston House in Upper Maze Hill, and attending St Michael’s School in Charles Road until the age of 14.

This rehearsed reading is based on our performances of Hugh Whitemore’s play at Streatham Festival 2015. It focuses on Turing the man, his personal moral code, the relationships that influenced his life and his struggle to appreciate the conventions and laws of 1950s society.