Veteran Actor Olu Jacobs Buried in Lagos as Nollywood Stars, Dignitaries Pay Tribute

Veteran Nigerian actor, Olu Jacobs, has been laid to rest in Lagos following a funeral service attended by family members, colleagues, friends, dignitaries and prominent figures in the Nigerian film industry.

The funeral service was held on Friday at the Freedom Centre in Lekki, where attendees gathered to celebrate the life and career of the late actor, who died in September at the age of 82.

Among the dignitaries present were Lagos State Deputy Governor, Obafemi Hamzat, and former Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun.

Several Nollywood personalities also attended the ceremony, including 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 in honour of Jacobs and his contributions to Nigeria’s entertainment industry.

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

His interest in acting reportedly developed after he watched a performance by Hubert Ogunde’s concert party at the Colonial Hotel in Kano.

He later travelled to England, where he studied acting at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London.

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

He subsequently featured in several 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 production of Sir Tom Stoppard’s play, Night and Day.

Following his return to Nigeria in 1990, Jacobs appeared in the Nigerian Television Authority detective series, The Third Eye, before becoming a prominent figure in the country’s developing Nollywood industry.

Over the course of his career, he featured in hundreds of films and earned widespread recognition for his performances across Nigerian cinema.

His contributions to the entertainment industry 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.

In 2023, he received the Industry Merit Award at the Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards (AMVCA) in recognition of his outstanding contribution to acting.

Jacobs is remembered for his decades-long contribution to Nigerian theatre, television and film, as well as his influence on generations of actors.