TV presenters Dick and Dom to play King Arthur and Patsy in Spamalot at
The Playhouse Theatre
West End actress Carley Stenson to play Lady of the Lake
CBBC’s Dick and Dom will make their West End musical theatre debuts by starring together on stage in Monty Python’s Spamalot at the Playhouse Theatre, where they will play the roles of King Arthur and Patsy from 2nd December for six weeks over the Christmas and New Year festive period.
Having found fame as presenters of double BAFTA Award winning BBC1 weekend show, Dick and Dom In Da Bungalow, Dick and Dom have presented a wide range of TV and radio shows including CBBC’s BAFTA nominated Absolute Genius With Dick and Dom, BBC Radio 1’s The Lie In, Sky1’s Are You Smarter Than A 10 Year Old, Challenge TV’s Takeshi’s Castle and CBBC’s Diddy Movies. They even starred on the big screen when they appeared in Horrid Henry: The Movie.
Dick (Richard McCourt) said; “I’ve always been a huge fan of all things Monty Python and so am very excited about the fact that I’m getting the chance to prove myself as King Arthur and take hold of the mighty Excalibuer.”
Dom (Dominic Wood) said; “I have my dad and older brothers to thank for bringing me up on Python. We watched it as much as watching Kids TV, so singing Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life on stage will be a career highlight! It’s also the first time in the west end for us, so… ‘Now for something completely different’.”
Joining Dick and Dom as King Arthur and Patsy on stage will be former Hollyoaks star and West End stage actress, Carley Stenson, who takes on the (all-singing-all-dancing) female lead role of The Lady of The Lake from 4th November. Carley is no stranger to the stage, having already appeared as Elle in Legally Blonde and as Princess Fiona in Shrek The Musical.
Carley Stenson said; “I’ve always enjoyed performing on the West End stage and I’m very much looking forward to joining the Spamalot cast and being part of such a much loved production.”
The production is currently enjoying huge success at The Playhouse Theatre with a new performance schedule, with two shows on Fridays (at 6pm and 9pm, so there are two chances to laugh-a-lot however bad your week’s been). Spamalot is a family friendly show suitable for Young Knights and Laker Girls aged eight and above.
Recent stars who have kept audiences laughing while appearing in Spamalot have included Stephen Tompkinson, Jon Culshaw, Marcus Brigstocke, Joe Pasquale (he became King of the Jungle back in 2004 in preparation for the role of King Arthur, at least that’s what we tell people), Todd Carty, Les Dennis and Warwick Davis.
The Charity Spamalot Gods (in 2D) continue with Michael Ball, Professor Brian Cox, Greg Dyke, Robert Lindsay and Gary Lineker, all stepping into the heavenly robes through the autumn months (they have been washed) after Michael Palin, Hugh Bonneville (we actually got the chap from Downton Abbey), Bradley Walsh, Barbara Windsor, Simon Callow, Christopher Biggins and Larry Lamb all played God on screen during Spamalot for a week at a time though the summer, with money being donated to their nominated charities.
Lovingly ripped off from the classic film comedy Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Spamalot is a kind-of new musical with a book by Eric Idle and an entirely new score for the new production, (well, almost) created by Eric Idle and John Du Prez.
Spamalot tells the legendary tale of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table and features a bevy (or possibly a brace) of beautiful show girls, witch burnings (cancelled due to health and safety) not to mention cows, killer rabbits and French people. The show features fantastic tunes more magical than a Camelot convention, including He Is Not Dead Yet, Knights of the Round Table, Find Your Grail and of course the Nation’s Favourite Comedy Song (Reader’s Digest Poll 2010 – before it went bust), Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life.
The season at The Playhouse, which is directed by Christopher Luscombe, follows Eric Idle’s acclaimed performance of ‘Always Look On The Bright Side of Life’ at the 2012 Olympic Closing Ceremony – the world sang along, and Spamalot audiences get the opportunity to do so too! During the run, there have been 27 onstage moustache incidents, three suspected cases of swine flu (French pigs!), six outbreak of nits and 92 pairs of coconuts used.
New Performance Schedule:
Monday – Thursday at 8.00pm, Friday at 6pm and 9pm, Saturday at 2.30pm and 8.00pm (no Wednesday matinee). Running time: 2 hours – this one doesn’t drag on!
Spamalot has now extended its run until 8th February 2014
THE PLAYHOUSE THEATRE, Northumberland Avenue, London, WC2N 5DE
Tickets: £15 – £65. ON SALE NOW
Box Office: 0844 871 7627 | www.spamalotwestend.co.uk
