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University of Sussex Media Release.
. FILM SHOW SET TO RAISE £30,000 FOR DISABLED YOUNGSTERS

27 January 2000
For immediate release

A special preview of Lord Attenborough's latest film, Grey Owl, which takes place on 10 February at the Gardner Arts Centre, Falmer, is expected to raise more than £30,000 for disabled youngsters.

The screening has been organised by the Chancellor's Society of the University of Sussex to boost funds for the Jubilee Scholarships, which was set up by the University in 1986 to help young people with severe physical disabilities in East and West Sussex to study for university entrance.

To date, 85 grants have been made to more than 60 young people. Due to rising student numbers, a substantial injection of cash is now needed to keep the scheme alive. An appeal target of £250,000 has been set, of which £140,000 has been raised.

Tickets are still available for the film event, which starts at 7.15pm with a buffet and wine at the Gardner Arts Centre, followed by a showing of Grey Owl in the auditorium. Afterwards, University Chancellor Lord Attenborough will discuss the making of the film he directed and co-produced.

Grey Owl is the story of Archie Belaney, a man born in Hastings in 1888 who went on to fool the world into believing he was a Canadian indian. He wrote four inspiring best-sellers about his way of life and even toured the UK in full native North American regalia to give lectures about conservation. He died in 1938 - a year after his true identity was exposed by his relatives in Hastings.

Among those who attended a Grey Owl talk during the 1930s in Leicester was the young Richard Attenborough. The memory came back to him more than 50 years later and he saw it as an ideal subject for a film. "It's a wonderful story, a great adventure", he said. "Here is somebody who, 60 years ago, believed passionately in the care and custodianship of the planet."

The film, which stars Hollywood heartthrob Pierce Brosnan, will go on general release in the spring.

Tickets for the film preview cost £25 and are available from the Gardner Arts Centre box office on 01273 685861.

Notes for Editors

For further information, please contact Alison Field, Communications Officer, University of Sussex Tel: 01273 678888, Fax: 01273 877456, email: A.Field@sussex.ac.uk

For an electronic version of this release or more information about the University, visit Sussex on the Web at: http://www.sussex.ac.uk To receive University of Sussex releases by email, please email information@sussex.ac.uk Include the name of your media outlet, your title, postal address, phone and fax numbers, and the headline of this news release.

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