Sir Ian McKellen Hospitalized After On-Stage Fall During PLAYER KINGS at Noël Coward Theatre

UPDATE: Sir Ian McKellen To Make Full Recovery After On-Stage Fall; PLAYER KINGS Tuesday Performance Canceled

The BBC reports that Sir Ian McKellen, the esteemed 85-year-old actor, has been hospitalized following an on-stage accident during a performance of Player Kings at the Noël Coward Theatre in London. The incident occurred during a fight scene when Sir Ian, portraying John Falstaff, lost his footing and fell off the front of the stage.

As the house lights came up, Sir Ian cried out in pain, and theatre staff immediately rushed to his aid. The audience was promptly evacuated, and the evening performance was cancelled.

Player Kings, a production of Henry IV, Parts One and Two, began its 12-week West End run in April. Ian McKellen plays Falstaff in a new version of Shakespeare’s Henry IV, adapted by the award-winning writer and director Robert Icke. 

The extent of Sir Ian's injuries has not yet been disclosed. 

The cast comprises Ian McKellen as Sir John Falstaff, Toheeb Jimoh (Ted Lasso & Romeo and Juliet) as Prince Harry and Richard Coyle (Ink & Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore) as King Henry IV, with Raphael Akuwudike (Prince John), Sara Beharrell (Snare/Davy), Samuel Edward-Cook (Hotspur/Pistol), Geoffrey Freshwater (Bardolph), James Garnon (Worcester/Justice Silence), Alice Hayes (Messenger), Henry Jenkinson (Harcourt), Nigel Lister (Northumberland/Francis) Annette McLaughlin(Warwick), Mark Monero (Peto), Hywel Morgan (Sir Walter Blunt), Joseph Mydell (Lord Chief Justice), Clare Perkins (Mistress Quickly), Daniel Rabin (Poins), David Semark(Sir Richard Vernon), David Shelley (Sheriff), Robin Soans (Justice Shallow), Tafline Steen (Doll Tearsheet/Lady Percy) and Perry Williams (Douglas/Prince Thomas) completing the cast.

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