Fans of Sherlock will want to see Andrew Scott’s Hamlet, which is available on BBC iPlayer right now – and even if you’re not a Sherlock aficionado, it’s well worth a watch!
Scott made his name as Moriarty in Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss’ popular drama, Sherlock, but last year played the tragic Prince of Denmark to audiences at the Almeida Theatre and the Harold Pinter Theatre in the West End, performances of which quickly sold out. The 3-and-a-bit hour play was subsequently shown on BBC2 on Saturday 31st March 2018, and so can be seen on iPlayer until the end of April. Here’s the synopsis for the critically-acclaimed adaptation:
Hamlet captures the Almeida Theatre’s 2017 acclaimed production of William Shakespeare’s great play, recorded as-live in its West End transfer on the stage of London’s Harold Pinter Theatre.
Robert Icke’s innovative modern-dress production, featuring Andrew Scott, Juliet Stevenson, Angus Wright, and Jessica Brown Findlay, has been widely acclaimed as a dazzlingly intelligent, forcefully contemporary staging. The Evening Standard hailed Andrew Scott’s ‘career-defining performance… he makes the most famous speeches feel fresh and unpredictable.’
The recording features the original cast, and is directed for the screen by Rhodri Huw, working in close collaboration with Robert Icke. Hamlet has design by Hildegard Bechtler, with lighting by Natasha Chivers, sound by Tom Gibbons, and video design by Tal Yarden. The stage production has been nominated for Best Revival, Andrew Scott as Best Actor and Tom Gibbons has been nominated for Best Sound Design in the forthcoming Olivier Awards. The production recently won Best Stage Revival in the WhatsOnStage Awards, and Juliet Stevenson won Best Supporting Actress in a Play whilst Andrew Scott won the Critics’ Circle Theatre Award for Best Shakespearean Performance. Hamlet is is an Illuminations/Almeida Theatre production presented by BBC, The Almeida Theatre, The Ambassador Theatre Group, Sonia Friedman Productions.
Doctor Who fans might recognise Angus Wright, who plays Claudius, from his role as Mr Dread in The Sarah Jane Adventures: Vault of Secrets.
"To be or not to be." Andrew Scott, as Hamlet, performs the opening lines of Shakespeare's most famous soliloquy. 🎭#Hamlet pic.twitter.com/Cd9a2JdJ2a
— BBC Two (@BBCTwo) March 28, 2018
Andrew’s take as Hamlet wowed live audiences, and it’s fantastic that the BBC is giving everyone the chance to see the production. Presumably, the National Theatre Live show will be released on DVD and Blu-ray in due time.
Andrew will further appear in a BBC2 version of King Lear as Edgar, expected later this year, alongside Anthony Hopkins (Thor), Tobias Menzies (Cold War), and Ninth Doctor, Christopher Eccleston.
See Hamlet on iPlayer now!
