BAFTA, Emmy, and Golden Globe nominee Hugh Bonneville will return to the West End next year in William Nicholson’s Shadowlands, which will play London's Aldwych Theatre February 5-May 9, 2026.
Bonneville will again play C.S. Lewis (author of The Chronicles of Narnia), whose orderly academic life as an Oxford Don is upended by the arrival of the American poet Joy Davidman.
This production was originally produced by Chichester Festival Theatre in 2019, also starring Bonneville with direction by Rachel Kavanaugh, who will also helm the London run. Additional casting, by Annelie Powell, will be announced at a later date.
Bonneville said in a statement, "Under Rachel Kavanaugh’s direction, I am thrilled to be revisiting William Nicholson’s beautiful play about love and loss as we bring the show to London audiences at The Aldwych. This theatre holds a special place in my heart as it’s where I saw my first Shakespeare, Peter Brook’s legendary RSC production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, in 1970.”
Bonneville is best known for his role as Lord Grantham in the TV and film series Downton Abbey and as Mr. Brown in the Paddington films. Further screen credits include Notting Hill, Iris, The Monuments Men, and BBC comedy series Twenty Twelve and W1A. On stage, Bonneville has performed with the Royal Shakespeare Company in productions such as The Alchemist and The Two Gentlemen of Verona, in Habeas Corpus at the Donmar Warehouse, King Lear at the Old Vic, A Midsummer Night's Dream at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, and more recently, Uncle Vanya in
Berkeley and Washington, D.C.
Based on a true story, Shadowlands was adapted from Nicholson's own original BAFTA-winning TV movie. It soon became a West End hit, winning the Evening Standard Award for Best Play, followed by a Tony-nominated Broadway transfer in 1990. In 1993 the play was adapted into
a film, directed by Richard Attenborough and starring
Anthony Hopkins and Debra Winger, which subsequently won the BAFTA Award
for Outstanding British Film.
Jonathan Church Theatre Productions, Trafalgar Theatre Productions, and Tilted present Shadowlands.
Tickets will go on sale October 15 by visiting Shadowlandsplay.com.
