For Ian McKellen, known as Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, 2014 has been a rather busy year so far. Middle-earth News decided to do a news round-up for the busy English actor.
Ian McKellen visits Oast Theatre
As the president of the Little Theatre Guild’s national conference, Ian McKellen visited the Oast Theatre in Tonbridge on May 4th and 5th. As a great supporter of local theatre around the UK, McKellen took the opportunity to attend a special performance of Loot by Joe Orton. Steve Hemsley, 45, performed in Loot and said that the cast was nervous that McKellen was going to be in the audience. McKellen took the time to go backstage to interact with the cast. Mr. Hemsley further added that McKellen asked the cast about their parts and “said how much he enjoyed it. He spent the evening in the bar with us eating fish and chips.”
Ian McKellen meets members of the Little Theatre Group, Anne Mallen, Laura Collins, Kevin Spence, Anne Cleverton, Keith Mears and Heather Smith. Source: courier.co.uk
Theatreland Documentary now streaming on Acorn TV
Starring Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart, Waiting for Godot ran for 172 sold-out performances. A documentary called Theatreland went ‘behind the scenes’ of the West End production of Waiting for Godot and Breakfast at Tiffany’s’:
Filmed over six months, “Theatreland,” according to press notes, “goes behind the scenes of both productions to reveal what makes a West End theatre tick. Meet the stars, the artistic director, the managers, stagehands, carpenters, and ushers. Explore the Haymarket, one of London’s oldest theatres, with 100-year-old seats and plumbing to match. Audiences realize none of this as the lights dim and the magic begins. From the first read-through to the final curtain call, this is theatre as you’ve never seen it before.”
Now, Theatreland is streaming on Acorn and also available on amazon.com
Ian McKellen to explore Sherlock’s twilight years
Ian McKellen has been cast as Sherlock Holmes in A Slight Trick of the Mind, an adaptation of the 2005 novel by Mitch Cullin which imagines Holmes’s twilight years as alluded to in Doyle’s novels. Laura Linney has been cast as Sherlock’s housekeeper. In contrast to recent Holmes adaptations, A Slight Trick of the Mind will be less action laden. Instead, the movie will focus on an aging Sherlock Holmes. The film will depict him working on his final case aged 63, and also retired in Sussex aged 91, mentally frail and obsessed with the unsolved crime. Directer Bill Condon told Entertainment Weekly, “I’m looking forward to the combined talent, skills, and smarts [of Linney and McKellen]. Both of them are incredibly detail-oriented and do an amazing amount of work before they get to set, and then they dive off the board and become their characters.”
Worldwide X-Men experience announced
With the release of the newest X-Men: Days of Future Past coming up, the promotion is in full swing. Now a worldwide live event has been announced. Similar to The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug Fan Event, the X-Men cast, including Ian McKellen, will split up after the global premiere in New York to go to premieres around the world all in one week.
So far, it is not known which actor will attend which location.
Luckily for all of us fans, Ian is very good about sharing his news on his social media accounts. You can follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
