We’ve had more than a few royal events recently, this one however is a 24-carat glittering masterpiece of a show, with a cast to match. Undoubtedly this is going to be one of this year’s must-see theatrical comic capers. THE CROWN JEWELS follows its West End premiere at the Garrick Theatre this summer before heading out on its royal tour which bring the show to the New Theatre in Cardiff this week..
The cast is absolutely jam packed with acting/comedy royalty too, as you can see from the trailer below…..
Incredibly, the story is a true one (loosely based) one of British history’s most audacious heist attempts. As Neil Morrissey said, it’s a bit like a historical Oceans Eleven.
And what a cast will be heading our way in October. As well as the aforementioned NEIL MORRISSEY, he of Men Behaving Badly, Line of Duty fame, we have MEL GIEDROYC (BBC 1’s The Great British Bake Off, Channel 4’s Light Lunch); CARRIE HOPE FLETCHER (Bad Cinderella, Les Misérables, Heathers in the West End); AIDAN MCARDLE (Leopoldstadt, West End, Ridley, ITV); JOE THOMAS (Channel 4’s The Inbetweeners, Fresh Meat, BBC 2’s White Gold) and TANVI VIRMANI (Life of Pi, West End).
The latest royal recruit, and coming to us directly from the West End production is AL MURRAY reprising his dual roles as the Merry Monarch, King Charles II and Keeper of the Jewels, Talbot Edwards.
The creative team are equally impressive with a list of award wins and nominations to their names, as well as some of our most loved TV shows.
SIMON NYE is the BAFTA-nominated creator of ITV’s The Durrells and BBC 1’s Men Behaving Badly. The show is directed by multi-Olivier Award winner SEAN FOLEY (Upstart Crow, The Ladykillers). The Crown Jewels is produced by SIMON FRIEND.
Writer Simon Nye told us……
“I hope audiences will be as titillated and thrilled as I am at the prospect of a riotous comedy-drama about a crown jewels heist that really happened. True crime comes to the West End, 350 years after the event. The cast is an amazing array of comedy talent, and the subject matter absurdly topical. Satire, sword-fighting, love, violence, an examination of the monarchy and Anglo-Irish relations – could you ask for anything more?”
Director Sean Foley continues…..
“I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to direct Simon Nye’s hilarious new play. An entirely modern take on the Restoration Comedy, it transports us to a completely different time – a time when England had a new king…whose name was Charles. I’m excited to be working with our brilliant cast, and we all hope to thoroughly entertain audiences in one of my favourite theatres – the Garrick – over this Coronation summer.”
Producer Simon Friend adds……
“The Crown Jewels came out of a mad idea that Simon Nye and I cooked up during lockdown, fantasising about shows we could make if theatres were to ever reopen. We’re incredibly lucky that such a talented cast, with Sean as director, have gathered around for this hilarious play about a famous heist that went awry, and we look forward to bringing some laughter to the West End this summer.”
THE CROWN JEWELS is at the New Theatre in Cardiff through to Saturday 7th October. Performances are at 7:30pm each evening withe a 2:30pm matinee on Wednesday and Saturday. Tickets start at £24, with a variety of concessions in place. For more details, and to get yours, go HERE.
