Gwilym Lee (Bohemian Rhapsody) will star as England football manager Gareth Southgate in the upcoming encore London run of James Graham's Olivier-winning play Dear England, set to perform March 10-May 24, 2025, at the National's Olivier Theatre and May 29-June 29 at the Lowry in Salford. Further casting is to be announced.
The new run will feature a revised script that carries its events into 2025, including the outcome of this summer's UEFA EURO tournament.
The title is also in the process of becoming a limited series for the BBC, with original star Joseph Fiennes reprising his performance as Southgate.
The work, which made its world premiere at the National in 2023 before transferring to London's West End, is a fictionalized take on England's men's football team and its player-turned-manager Southgate. Read reviews for the 2023 world premiere at the National here.
The premiere run won two 2024 Olivier Awards, including Best New Play and Best Actor in a Supporting Role, the latter for Will Close. The production features scenic design by Es Devlin, costume design by Evie Gurney, lighting design by Jon Clark, video design by Ash J Woodward, movement direction by Ellen Kane and Hannes Langolf, sound design by Dan Balfour and Tom Gibbons, additional music by Max Perryment, and casting by Bryony Jarvis-Taylor. Elin Schofield is directing this encore run from Goold's original work.
“I am thrilled to return to the stage after seven years (and to the National Theatre after nearly twice that) to play Gareth Southgate in Rupert Goold’s brilliant production," says Lee in a statement. "I can’t say I grew up with football in my bones, like some, but even I was swept up on the wave of excitement and optimism that this group of players under Gareth Southgate created again and again. They struck a chord that resonated beyond the world of football and started a conversation about things like identity, leadership, and Englishness that James Graham so passionately encapsulates in this play. I can’t wait to take on the role and continue this conversation.”
Visit NationalTheatre.org.uk and TheLowry.com for tickets.
