Nuffield Theatre announces an evening with Laura Carmichael & Samantha Bond

Nuffield have announced a special evening with the stars of Downton Abbey on Sunday 7th February at the Nuffield Theatre, in Southampton. 

Laura Carmichael (Lady Edith Crawley) and Samantha Bond (Lady Rosamund Painswick) will talk about their lives in TV, theatre and film at this special one-off event to raise funds for Nuffield's charitable activities. The evening will be hosted by BBC South Today presenter Sally Taylor MBE. 

Interview: Tom Hanson, starring in The Gathered Leaves at the Park Theatre

Tom Hanson is currently starring as Simon Pennington in the world premiere of Andrew Keatley’s play The Gathered Leaves at the Park Theatre.

Set over the over Easter weekend in 1997, The Gathered Leaves is described as a “moving, poignant and funny family drama”. The play is about the Pennington family who haven’t been in the same room for over 17 years. Three generations come together to celebrate an elderly family member’s birthday…

Tom is the son of Samantha Bond and Alex Hanson, the latter of whom is also starring in the production as Simon’s father, Giles. The cast of Antony Eden’s production also includes Jane Asher and her real-life daughter, Katie Scarfe. Tom recently made his professional debut as Hugo in Posh (Nottingham Playhouse/Salisbury Playhouse).

I recently spoke to Tom about what makes The Gathered Leaves such an interesting play, why he’s excited to be working alongside such a stellar cast and whether he always wanted to follow in his parents’ footsteps…

To work alongside your father is a very unique opportunity! What drew you to the project?

To be honest it was the play, it’s so well written. To have the opportunity to work with a parent, or any actor of that calibre – this cast is full of them – is fantastic. This is going to sound arrogant, but I don’t mean this in an arrogant way at all; I read the whole thing and I just felt like the writer sort of knew me. Simon, the role I play, can just be a belligerent arse… and I think I probably can as well… well not a belligerent arse, but his sense of humour is so similar to mine and I was just like, ‘I have to do this’. I went and auditioned and luckily got it. I thought it was a brilliant piece!

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels extends to March 2015

According to The Daily Mail, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels is extending its West End run at the Savoy Theatre until 7th March 2015. 

Robert Lindsay, Rufus Hound, Samantha Bond, John Marquez and Katherine Kingsley star in Jerry Mitchell's production. The show is based on the legendary 1988 film which famously starred Michael Caine and Steve Martin. 

The musical premiered on Broadway in 2005 but has since been reconceived and reimagined for British audiences.

Review: Dirty Rotten Scoundrels at the Savoy Theatre

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels

Savoy Theatre

Reviewed on Saturday 29th March 2014

Filling the gap left behind by Singin' In The Rain and Top Hat, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels feels like a timeless classic, despite only receiving its first run ten years ago. This is not only down to the warm humour and elegant style, but also as the entire show is so slick - it's as if Dirty Rotten Scoundrels has been running in the West End for years.

The production's director and choreographer, Jerry Mitchell must be commended. He insisted the show had a thorough tech period and two Broadway style out of town tryouts which has clearly benefited the production hugely as every detail is polished and fine-tuned.

Set in the French Riviera, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels follows two conmen as they go head to head to pull off their biggest con, whilst fighting for the affections of millionaire soap heiress Christine Colgate.

Funnily enough, at times Dirty Rotten Scoundrels reminded me of Mitchell's most recent West End production, Legally Blonde (which I adored). Both shows are American but behold a British charm. Dirty Rotten Scoundrels works a treat with British audiences. Sadly I didn't see the show on Broadway, but I suspect Mitchell has injected British appeal into the show. He certainly deserves several awards for his terrific direction and divine choreography.

Interview: Samantha Bond & John Marquez, stars of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels

Samantha Bond

Samantha Bond and John Marquez are currently starring in one of this year’s most highly anticipated musicals, the UK premiere of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. The production is currently playing to regional audiences prior to its West End opening in April. 

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, which also stars Robert Lindsay, Rufus Hound and Katherine Kingsley, is the inaugural production for Jerry Mitchell Productions. The show is based on the legendary 1988 film which famously starred Michael Caine and Steve Martin. The musical premiered on Broadway in 2005 but has since been reconceived and reimagined for British audiences.

Samantha Bond plays Muriel Eubanks, a glamorous divorcee looking for love in Beaumont-sur-Mer on the French Riviera opposite John Marquez who plays Andre Thibault, Beaumont-sur-Mer’s Chief of Police.

Samantha is best known on screen for playing Lady Rosamund Painswick in Downton Abbey, Auntie Angela in Outnumbered and Miss Moneypenny in Bond films: Goldeneye, The World is Not Enough, Tomorrow Never Dies and Die Another Day alongside Pierce Brosnan. She has also worked extensively on stage with her most notable stage credits including: What the Butler Saw and An Ideal Husband (Vaudeville), Arcadia (Duke of York’s) and Amy’s View (National Theatre/West End/Broadway) for which she received a Tony Award nomination.