Laurence Foster was born in Wolverhampton and studied acting at Birmingham Theatre School, where he gained the Outstanding Student Award and a Diploma in Theatre Studies. Seasons at various English theatres were a prelude to a lifelong career in Irish theatre, radio, television and films. He was Chairperson for the Prix Italia and represented Irish Broadcasting in Europe. He was also a Birmingham League and Leinster League cricketer. In England he performed in a wide variety of shows, from the classics to pantomime, before joining the RTÉ Players in 1968, with whom he acted and directed many plays and radio ‘soaps’, including Lee Dunne’s Konvenience Korner and eventually being appointed head of RTÉ Radio Drama. Along the way, he would work with many famous actors and entertainers, both Irish and international, including Micheál Mac Liammóir, Jack Cruise, Dennis Waterman, Michael Gambon and Donovan.

More recently he has received acclaim for his solo performance as Dickens in Dublin. His one man show is, as far as possible, based on exactly the kind of one man show that Charles Dickens gave in Dublin exactly 150 years ago next year.