Ian McKellen is to celebrate his 8oth birthday next year by raising funds for theatres, with a new solo show which will play on 80 stages across the UK.

Photo: Oliver Rosser - Feast Creative

It all begins in January 2019 with a Tour of London from the National Theatre to the Theatre Royal Stratford East, as well as performances in the West End and Outer London. Then, across the country, he will visit theatres large and small with which he has personal connections, including amateur groups he knew as a child and notable playhouses he has played in as a professional actor over the last half-century.

Accessibly priced tickets will be available everywhere. All profits will benefit specific causes at each theatre.

His intimate show is a mixture of anecdote and acting, including Tolkien, Shakespeare, others...and you the audience.

Ian McKellen says: “I’m celebrating my 80th birthday by touring a new solo show to theatres I know well and a few that I don’t. The show starts with Gandalf and will probably end with an invitation to act with me on stage. In-between there will be anecdotes and acting. I open at my local arts centre in January and end up by August in Orkney. Live theatre has always been thrilling to me, as an actor and in the audience. Growing up in Lancashire, I was grateful to those companies who toured beyond London and I’ve always enjoyed repaying that debt by touring up and down the country myself, with the National Theatre, Royal Shakespeare Company, Prospect Theatre, the Actors’ Company, as well as with commercial productions. Sean Mathias, the director and I have worked together for stage and screen, many happy times.”

IAN MCKELLEN UK TOUR DATES

Ian McKellen takes to the stage at the Harold Pinter Theatre from 20 September - 5 January 2020 25-26 January 2019 | The Space 28 January 2019 | National Theatre, Lyttleton 30 January 2019 | Young Vic 3 February 2019 | Bridge Theatre 4 February 2019 | Richmond Theatre 6 February 2019 | Above The Stag Theatre 10 February 2019 | Hampstead Theatre 11 February 2019 | Arts Theatre 12-13 February 2019 | Theatre Royal Windsor 17 February 2019 | The Old Vic 19-20 February 2019 | Bristol Old Vic 22 February 2019 | Royal Court Theatre 24-25 February 2019 | The Queen’s Theatre 3 March 2019 | Lyric Hammersmith 4 March 2019 | The Questors, Judi Dench Playhouse 7 March 2019 (Mat & Eve) | Duke of York’s Theatre 8-9 March 2019 | Ipswich New Wolsey 10 March 2019 | Theatre Royal Stratford East 13 March 2019 | Swansea Grand Theatre 14-15 March 2019 | Aberystwyth Arts Centre 16 March 2019 | The Hafren 18-19 March 2019 |Theatr Clwyd 24 March 2019 | Theatre Royal Bath 29-30 March 2019 | Maddermarket Theatre 2 April 2019 | The Leas Cliff Hall 5 April 2019 | Chichester Minerva Theatre 12-13 April 2019 | Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds 14 April 2019 | Royal & Derngate 17-18 April 2019 | Colchester Mercury 20 April 2019 | Belgrade Theatre Coventry 24-25 April 2019 | Norwich Playhouse 27-28 April 2019 | King’s Lynn Shakespeare Festival 30 April – 1 May 2019 | Oxford Playhouse 3-4 May 2019 | Jersey Opera House 6 May 2019 | Aylesbury Waterside Theatre 7-8 May 2019 | Cheltenham Everyman Theatre 10-11 May 2019 | Cambridge Arts Theatre 13-14 May 2019 | Wigan Little Theatre 15 May 2019 | The Forum Theatre 17-18 May 2019 | Liverpool Playhouse 19 May 2019 | Warwick Arts Centre 20 May 2019 | Blackpool Grand 23 May 2019 | Burnley Youth Theatre 25 May 2019 | The Albert Halls Theatre 28 May 2019 | The Dukes 31 May 2019 | Buxton Opera House 1-2 June 2019 | Curve Theatre, Studio 3 June 2019 | Sheffield Crucible 4 June 2019 | Theatre Royal Wakefield 5-6 June 2019 | HOME Manchester 9 June 2019 | Forum Theatre Billingham 11 June 2019 | The Civic 12 June 2019 | CAST 14 June 2019 | The Georgian Theatre Royal 16 June 2019 | Hull New Theatre 17 June 2019 | Grand Opera House 21-22 June 2019 | Birmingham Repertory Theatre 25-26 June 2019 | Nottingham Playhouse 27-28 June 2019 | Cardiff New Theatre 1 July 2019 | Northcott Theatre 2 July 2019 | Lighthouse, Poole's Centre For The Arts 3 July 2019 | Marine Theatre 5 July 2019 | The Watermill Theatre 15-19 July 2019 | Theatre Royal Brighton 21 July 2019 | Royal Shakespeare Theatre & Swan Theatre Waterside, 25-26 July 2019 | Lyric Theatre 27 July 2019 | Waterside Theatre 29 July 2019 | The Braid Arts Centre 31 July – 1 August 2019 | Theatre at the Mill 9 August 2019 | Dundee Rep Theatre 11 August 2019 | Pitlochry Festival Theatre 12 August 2019 | Eden Court 14 August 2019 | Aberdeen Tivoli 18 August 2019 | Newcastle Theatre Royal 20 August 2019 | Theatre by the Lake 22-25 August 2019 | Edinburgh International Festival at Assembly Hall, 28 August 2019 | The Orkney Theatre 15 September 2019 | National Theatre September 2019 | Harold Pinter Theatre