01/11/2026
To the many remarkable dedications to the late Sir Patrick Stewart, we would like to add our own small tribute to his long and enduring legacy as one of the stage and screen's most beloved icons.
In 2009, we had the pleasure and great privilege to welcome him to John Clare Cottage, where he spoke with great fondness of sharing with Clare not only his birthday, but a deep love of the English countryside.
He discovered Clare in his 20s as a result of playing the asylum warden in a docudrama about Clare's life, and was drawn to the poet's deep affection for his birthplace:
"He writes about it in terms that are as lovely as anything that Wordsworth, or Shelley or Keats wrote. A sensitive poetic soul such as Clare would obviously find a reflection in the same sensitivity and poetics as myself!"
Sir Patrick supported many different charities and community projects, the John Clare Trust included. Such a kind and generous man will be sorely missed. We hope, like Clare, his legacy lasts for decades to come.
See Peterborough Telegraph's account of the visit below.
https://www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk/news/people/in-photos-the-day-legendary-actor-sir-patrick-stewart-came-to-helpstons-john-clare-cottage-9320572
The former Star Trek and X-Men actor died earlier this week aged 86
