Anthony Spawforth

Anthony Spawforth (1919-2003), British teacher of the Alexander Technique, who started his training with F. M. Alexander.

 

Life

Anthony Spawforth started training with F. M. Alexander in February 1951, and was qualified by Walter Carrington in 1955.

 

He worked as an assistant at Ashley Place and also taught part-time in Copenhagen, Denmark, from 1958, and was the first teacher to teach the Technique in continental Europe.

 

He and his wife Pat, who also trained in the Technique, moved to Bournemouth in 1966 where he taught until a few days before his death. For some years he also taught regularly in Bath and Cardiff.[1] [2] [3]

 

A description of his style of teaching is provided in the obituary by his daughter, Penny.[4]

 

Writings, Video

Spawforth gave the F. Matthias Alexander Memorial Lecture in 1997, ‘F. M. Alexander’s training course: The last years’,[5] his memories of training with Alexander 1951–53.

 

He gave the keynote address to the 6^th International Congress of the Alexander Technique in Freiburg, in 1999.[6]

 

A workshop by Anthony Spawforth given at the 2001 STAT conference in Bristol was published as a DVD.[7]

 

Other people’s writings

Spawforth is mentioned in Binkley’s diaries of training with F. M. Alexander.[8]

 

Obituaries and remembrances

‘Anthony Spawforth 1919-2003’ by Penny Spawforth.[9]

‘Tony Spawforth’ by Walter Carrington.[10]

‘A man of many parts’ by John Edwards.[11]

‘Loss of a pioneer’ by Jean Clark.[12]

 

Anthony Spawforth *25 March 1919 – †8 March 2003.

 

References

[1] ‘Tony Spawforth’ by Walter Carrington in STATNews May 2003, vol. 6 no. 10 (STAT, 2003), p. 8.

[2] ‘A man of many parts’ by John Edwards in STATNews May 2003, vol. 6 no. 10 (STAT, 2003), pp. 8–9.

[3] ‘Loss of a pioneer’ by Jean Clark in STATNews May 2003, vol. 6 no. 10 (STAT, 2003), pp. 9, 20.

[4] ‘Anthony Spawforth 1919-2003’ by Penny Spawforth in The Alexander Journal no. 20 edited by Francsca Greenoak (STAT, 2003), pp. 45-46.

[5] ‘F. M. Alexander’s training course: The last years’ by Tony Spawforth in The Alexander Journal no. 16 edited by Adam Nott (STAT, 1999), pp. 3–8.

[6] ‘Keynote address’ by Tony Spawforth in The Congress Papers 1999, An Ongoing Discovery edited by Jean M. O. Fischer (STATBooks, 2001), pp. 17-25.

[7] Tony Spawforth Bristol 2001 DVD. Edited by David Reed (David Reed Media, 2005).

[8] The Expanding Self by Goddard Binkley (STATBooks, 1993).

[9] ‘Anthony Spawforth 1919-2003’ by Penny Spawforth in The Alexander Journal no. 20 edited by Francsca Greenoak (STAT, 2003), pp. 45-46.

[10] ‘Tony Spawforth’ by Walter Carrington in STATNews May 2003, vol. 6 no. 10 (STAT, 2003), p. 8.

[11] ‘A man of many parts’ by John Edwards in STATNews May 2003, vol. 6 no. 10 (STAT, 2003), pp. 8–9.

[12] ‘Loss of a pioneer’ by Jean Clark in STATNews May 2003, vol. 6 no. 10 (STAT, 2003), pp. 9, 20.

Copyright Jean M. O. Fischer, © 2013–2020