Alan Booth (5 December 194624 January 1993)
(''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', 5 February 1993)
Archived copy
was an English writer who wrote two books about his journeys on foot through the Japanese countryside. The better-known of the two, '' The Roads to Sata'', published in 1985, is about his travels in 1977 from

Cape Sōya is the northernmost point of the island of Hokkaidō, Japan. It is situated in Wakkanai, Hokkaido, Wakkanai, Sōya Subprefecture. The is at the cape, although the true List of extreme points of Japan, northernmost point under Japanese control ...

, the northern tip of

Hokkaidō is the second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by railway via the Seikan Tunnel. The ...

, to

Cape Sata Cape Sata (佐多岬, ''Sata Misaki'') is a cape at the southern tip of the Ōsumi Peninsula of Kyūshū island, Japan, and is the southernmost point of the island, just south of 31 degrees latitude. It belongs to the town of Minamiōsumi, Kago ...

, the southern tip of

Kyūshū is the third-largest island of Japan's four main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands (i.e. excluding Okinawa and the other Ryukyu (''Nansei'') Islands). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regio ...

. The second, '' Looking for the Lost'', was published posthumously in 1995. Booth also wrote a guidebook to Japan, as well as numerous articles on Japan and other topics.

Biography

Booth was born in

Leytonstone Leytonstone ( ) is an area in East London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It adjoins Wanstead to the north-east, Forest Gate to the south-east, Stratford to the south-west, Leyton to the west, and Walthamstow to the nor ...

, London, and studied drama at Leyton County High School for Boys. While he was still at school he formed and directed the Leyton Youth Theatre Company, for which Leyton District Council provided a grant and free use of public buildings for performances, including productions of ''Hamlet'' and ''Othello''. Booth studied drama at the

University of Birmingham The University of Birmingham (informally Birmingham University) is a Public university, public research university in Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Queen's College, Birmingham (founded in 1825 as ...

, where he became a prominent member of its Guild Theatre Group (GTG). Among the plays he directed for the GTG were ''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

'' (First Quarto), done in Booth's version of

Noh is a major form of classical Japanese dance-drama that has been performed since the 14th century. It is Japan's oldest major theater art that is still regularly performed today. Noh is often based on tales from traditional literature featuri ...

style, and his own translation of

Racine Jean-Baptiste Racine ( , ; ; 22 December 1639 – 21 April 1699) was a French dramatist, one of the three great playwrights of 17th-century France, along with Molière and Corneille, as well as an important literary figure in the Western tra ...

's ''

Phèdre ''Phèdre'' (; originally ''Phèdre et Hippolyte'') is a French dramatic tragedy in five acts written in alexandrine verse by Jean Racine, first performed in 1677 at the theatre of the Hôtel de Bourgogne in Paris. Composition and premiere With ...

'', set in a samurai milieu. He also directed an open-air production of

Marlowe Marlowe may refer to: Name * Marlowe (name), including list of people and characters with the surname or given name * Christopher Marlowe (1564–1593), English dramatist, poet and translator * Pat Marlowe (1933–1962), English socialite * Phili ...

's '' Faustus'' in

Cannon Hill Park Cannon Hill Park is a park located in south Birmingham, England. It is the most popular park in the city, covering consisting of formal, conservation, woodland and sports areas. Recreational activities at the park include boating, fishing, bowls ...

. He was a regular contributor to ''Mermaid'', the university's magazine of students' verse, and won the ''

Birmingham Post The ''Birmingham Post'' is a weekly printed newspaper based in Birmingham, England, with distribution throughout the West Midlands. First published under the name the ''Birmingham Daily Post'' in 1857, it has had a succession of distinguished ...

s Annual Poetry Prize. In 1970 Booth moved to Japan to study

Noh theatre is a major form of classical Japanese dance-drama that has been performed since the 14th century. It is Japan's oldest major theater art that is still regularly performed today. Noh is often based on tales from traditional literature featuri ...

, but soon began writing. For the next 20 years he lived in Tokyo and worked for the

Macmillan Press Palgrave Macmillan is a British academic and trade publishing company headquartered in the London Borough of Camden. Its programme includes textbooks, journals, monographs, professional and reference works in print and online. It maintains offi ...

, and as a film reviewer for the ''Asahi Evening News''. He also appeared in the BBC Learning Zone programme ''Japanese Language and People'', episode 6, "On the Road", in which he was interviewed about aspects of life in Japan."On the Road"
(

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

, 1991). Alan Booth died of colon cancer in 1993, leaving his second wife, Su-chzeng Ong, and their daughter, actress Mirai Booth-Ong.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Booth, Alan 1946 births 1993 deaths English travel writers Deaths from colorectal cancer in Japan Alumni of the University of Birmingham