Olu Jacobs laid to rest in Lagos

Veteran actor Olu Jacobs has been buried in Lagos following a funeral service held on Friday.

The funeral service took place at the Freedom Centre in Lekki, where family members, colleagues, friends, dignitaries and several stars of the Nigerian film industry gathered to honour the late actor.

Jacobs died in September at the age of 82 after a career spanning several decades and earning him recognition as one of Nigeria’s most respected actors.

Among those who attended the funeral were Lagos State Deputy Governor Obafemi Hamzat and former Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun.

Nollywood personalities at the ceremony included Shaffy Bello, Keppy Ekpeyong, Stan Nze, Morayo Afolabi-Brown, Ireti Doyle, Lala Akindoju, Kate Henshaw, OC Ukeje, Patrick Doyle, Stephanie Okereke and Ernest Obi.

The funeral followed a night of tributes and a service of songs held on Wednesday to celebrate Jacobs and his contributions to the Nigerian entertainment industry.

Born in 1942 to parents from Egba Alake, Jacobs spent his early years in Kano, where he attended Holy Trinity School.

His passion for the performing arts developed after he watched a Hubert Ogunde concert party performance at the Colonial Hotel in Kano. He subsequently moved to England, where he trained as an actor at The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London.

Jacobs began building his stage career in the 1970s. In 1972, he played The Boy in ‘A Taste of Honey’ at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield.

He later appeared in a number of British television productions, including ‘The Goodies,’ ‘Till Death Us Do Part’ and ‘Barlow at Large.’

In 1978, he portrayed President Mageeba in Michael Codron’s presentation of Sir Tom Stoppard’s play ‘Night and Day’.

After returning to Nigeria in 1990, Jacobs featured in the NTA detective series ‘The Third Eye’ before becoming a prominent figure in the country’s emerging Nollywood industry.

He went on to act in hundreds of films and established himself as one of the most acclaimed performers in Nigerian cinema.

His career earned him several honours, including the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2021 Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF) and an Icon Award from the Audio-Visual Rights Society of Nigeria (AVRS) in 2022.

At the 2023 AMVCA, Jacobs received the Industry Merit Award in recognition of his outstanding contribution to acting.