1976 Laurence Olivier Awards

1976 Society of West End Theatre Awards
Date	December 1976
Location	Café Royal
Country
Presented by
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The 1976 Society of West End Theatre Awards were held in December 1976, London. They were the first major award ceremony celebrating excellence in West End theatre from the Society of West End Theatre, which would later be called the Society of London Theatre. The awards would not become the Laurence Olivier Awards, as they are known today, until the 1984 ceremony.

Winners and nominees

Play of the Year	Musical of the Year
Dear Daddy by Denis Cannan – Ambassadors For King and Country by John Wilson – Mermaid Funny Peculiar by Mike Stott – Garrick Old World by Aleksei Arbuzov, adapted by Ariadne Nicolaeff – RSC at the Aldwych	A Chorus Line – Theatre Royal, Drury Lane Ipi Tombi – Her Majesty's Side by Side by Sondheim – Wyndham's Very Good Eddie – Piccadilly
Comedy of the Year
Donkeys' Years by Michael Frayn – Globe The Bed Before Yesterday by Ben Travers – Lyric Confusions by Alan Ayckbourn – Apollo Funny Peculiar by Mike Stott – Garrick
Actor of the Year in a Revival	Actress of the Year in a Revival
Alan Howard in Henry IV and Henry V – RSC at the Aldwych Tom Conti in Don Juan and The Devil's Disciple – RSC at the Aldwych Albert Finney in Hamlet and Tamburlaine the Great – National Theatre Emrys James in Henry IV and Henry V – RSC at the Aldwych	Dorothy Tutin in A Month in the Country – Albery Susan Fleetwood in Hamlet, Tamburlaine the Great and The Playboy of the Western World – National Theatre Geraldine McEwan in On Approval – Theatre Royal Haymarket Googie Withers in An Ideal Husband and The Cherry Orchard
Actor of the Year in a New Play	Actress of the Year in a New Play
Paul Copley in For King and Country – Mermaid Richard Beckinsale in Funny Peculiar – Garrick Frank Finlay in Watch It Come Down and Weapons of Happiness – National Theatre Alec McCowen in The Family Dance – Criterion	Peggy Ashcroft in Old World – RSC at the Aldwych Pauline Collins in Engaged – National Theatre Penelope Keith in Donkeys' Years – Globe Joan Plowright in The Bed Before Yesterday – Lyric
Comedy Performance of the Year
Penelope Keith in Donkeys' Years – Globe Peter Barkworth in Crown Matrimonial – Theatre Royal Haymarket Richard Beckinsale in Funny Peculiar – Garrick Geraldine McEwan in Oh, Coward! – Criterion
Supporting Artist of the Year
Margaret Courtenay in Separate Tables – Apollo Bill Fraser in M. Perrichon's Travels, The Circle, The Fool and Twelfth Night – Theatre Royal Haymarket Trevor Peacock in Henry IV and The Merry Wives of Windsor – RSC at the Aldwych André van Gyseghem in Henry IV and Hamlet – RSC at the Aldwych
Director of the Year
Jonathan Miller for Three Sisters – Cambridge Alan Ayckbourn for Confusions, Shakespeare's People and Yahoo – Apollo Buzz Goodbody for King Lear and Occupations Terry Hands for Old World, Henry IV and Henry V – RSC at the Aldwych
Designer of the Year
Farrah for Henry IV and Henry V – RSC at the Aldwych Eileen Diss for The Family Dance – Criterion Ralph Koltai for Old World and Wild Oats – RSC at the Aldwych Alan Tagg for Confusions – Apollo, Donkeys' Years – Globe and Same Time, Next Year – Prince of Wales
Society Special Award
Save London's Theatres Campaign

Productions with multiple nominations and awards

The following 12 productions received multiple nominations:

• 6: Henry IV
• 5: Henry V
• 4: Donkeys' Years, Funny Peculiar and Old World
• 3: Confusions and Hamlet
• 2: For King and Country, Tamburlaine the Great, The Bed Before Yesterday and The Family Dance

The following three productions received multiple awards:

• 2: Donkeys' Years, Henry IV and Henry V

See also

• 30th Tony Awards

External links

• Previous Olivier Winners – 1976