Geoffrey Streatfeild, Chuk Iwuji - 25 December 2008

On Thursday 25 December 2008, there was a fabulous documentary on More4 called To Be Or Not To Be In Shakespeare, devoted to the perils and joys of being a Shakespearean actor. It featured interviews with a whole host of RSC alumni, including Geoffrey Streatfeild, Chuk Iwuji, and Michael Boyd. While it is sadly too late to catch it on TV, it is still possible (and recommended!) to watch online until late January.

Thank you, Anna! ^_^

How to get your Histories fix this Christmas

Television
Monday 22 December, 2pm - Rosemary and Thyme, ITV1, with Jonathan Slinger.
Tuesday 23 December, 7.55pm - Midsomer Murders, ITV3, with Geoffrey Freshwater.
Sunday 28 December, 8pm - The 39 Steps, BBC One, with Sandy Neilson.

Radio
Thursday 25 December, 2.15pm - The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, BBC Radio 4, with Chuk Iwuji.
Saturday 27 December, 9pm - Coram Boy (part 2), BBC Radio 4, with Jonathan Slinger.

Theatre
Treasure Island, Theatre Royal Haymarket, London. Running until 10 January, with Matt Costain.
The Playboy of the Western World, Abbey Theatre, Dublin. Running until 31 January, with Chuk Iwuji.
Oliver!, Theatre Royal Drury Lane, London. Running until 29 September, with Julius D'Silva.

Online
Exploring Shakespeare - Henry V.
Exploring Shakespeare - Richard III.
YouTube - RSC transforms the Roundhouse.
YouTube - Final performance of the RSC's Histories.
WhatsOnStage.com Theatregoers' Choice Awards, voting open until 31 January.
Beyond the Histories.

Hope you all have a cracking holiday season, whatever you get up to, and a most delightful new year! We already have some awesome Histories-related productions coming up for 2009, and I'm very much looking forward to learning about more. :3

Keith Bartlett - 27 January to 7 March 2009

Keith Bartlett will be appearing in The Lifesavers at Theatre503, London, and the Mercury Theatre, Colchester. The production runs from 27 January to 21 February 2009 at Theatre503, and tickets are onsale now. It will then transfer to the Mercury Theatre from 24 February to 7 March, and tickets are onsale now. This is a new play from award-winning playwright Fraser Grace, and will be directed by Paul Robinson.

Richard Cordery - 23 January to 28 February 2009

Richard Cordery will be appearing in Spring Awakening at the Lyric Hammersmith, London. The production runs from 23 January to 28 February 2009, and tickets are onsale now. This is the UK premiere of the award-winning Broadway musical, based on Frank Wedekind's controversial play, and will be directed by Michael Mayer. Richard is playing the Adult Men.

Jonathan Slinger - September 2008

Jonathan Slinger has been filming a BBC Drama production called Hunter. This two-part drama, also featuring Geoffrey Streatfeild, has been filming in London during September 2008. There is no date for broadcast at present, but it is due to air on BBC One sometime in early 2009. Jonathan is playing DC Miles.

Maureen Beattie - 15 to 19 December 2008

Maureen Beattie will be part of BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour Drama this week. A Small Town Murder is a crime mystery by Scott Cherry, and will be told in five parts. It will be broadcast daily from Monday 15 to Friday 19 December 2008 at 10.45am and 7.45pm on Radio 4. You can either tune in the traditional way, or listen online. You can also listen online for up to 7 days after broadcast. Maureen is playing DI Long.

Jonathan Slinger - 14 and 21 December 2008

Jonathan Slinger will be part of BBC Radio 4's Coram Boy radio adaptation. This is a new production of the popular novel by Jamila Gavin, adapted by Gavin for radio and directed by Celia de Wolff. It will be broadcast in two parts on Sunday 14 and Sunday 21 December 2008 at 3pm on Radio 4. You can either tune in the traditional way, or listen online. You can also listen online for up to 7 days after broadcast. Jonathan is playing Alexander, as narrator.

Thank you, Carol. ^_^

John Mackay - 15 May to 2 October 2009

John Mackay will be appearing in Julius Caesar at the Courtyard Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon. The production runs from 15 May to 2 October 2009, and tickets are onsale now. This particular production is one of the first plays from the new long-term RSC ensemble, and will be directed by Lucy Bailey. John is playing Cassius.

WOS Theatregoers' Choice Awards - nominations announced!

The nominations for this year's WhatsOnStage.com Theatregoers' Choice Awards have been announced, and the Histories have received recognition in six categories.

The SPOTLIGHT Best Actress in a Play
- Deanna Dunagan – August: Osage County at the NT Lyttelton
- Katy Stephens – The Histories, RSC at the Roundhouse
- Lesley Sharp – Harper Regan at the NT Cottesloe
- Lindsay Duncan – That Face at the Duke of York’s
- Margaret Tyzack – The Chalk Garden at the Donmar Warehouse
- Penelope Wilton – The Chalk Garden at the Donmar Warehouse

The AMBASSADOR TICKETS Best Ensemble Performance
- August: Osage County – at the NT Lyttelton
- Black Watch – National Theatre of Scotland at the Barbican
- Brief Encounter – at The Cinema, Haymarket
- Into the Hoods – at the Novello
- The Histories – RSC at the Roundhouse
- The Norman Conquests – at the Old Vic

Best Shakespearean Production
- A Midsummer Night’s Dream – at Shakespeare’s Globe
- Much Ado About Nothing – at the NT Olivier
- Othello – at the Donmar Warehouse
- The Histories – RSC at the Roundhouse
- The Merry Wives of Windsor – at Shakespeare’s Globe
- Twelfth Night – at the Tricycle

The SEATCHOICE Best Director
- Emma Rice – Brief Encounter at The Cinema, Haymarket
- Michael Grandage – Othello & The Chalk Garden at the Donmar Warehouse & Ivanov, Donmar West End at Wyndham’s
- Matthew Warchus – The Norman Conquests at the Old Vic
- Michael Boyd – The Histories, RSC at the Roundhouse
- Rupert Goold – The Last Days of Judas Iscariot at the Almeida, Six Characters in Search of an Author at the Gielgud & No Man’s Land at the Duke of York’s
- Samuel West – Dealer’s Choice at Trafalgar Studios & Waste at the Almeida

Best Set Designer
- Eugene Lee – Imagine This at the New London
- Klara Zieglerova – Jersey Boys at the Prince Edward
- Miriam Buether – In the Red & Brown Water at the Young Vic
- Neil Murray – Brief Encounter at The Cinema, Haymarket
- Rob Howell – The Norman Conquests at the Old Vic
- Tom Piper – The Histories, RSC at the Roundhouse

The AKA Theatre Event of the Year
- David Tennant returning to the stage in Hamlet for the RSC
- The launch of the Donmar West End season at Wyndham’s
- La Clique’s London debut at the Hippodrome
- The in-the-round transformation of the Old Vic for The Norman Conquests
- The RSC’s staging of The Histories at the Roundhouse
- Widespread protests over arts funding cutbacks

Voting is open now until 31 January 2009. with the winners to be announced in the week commencing 9 February 2009. You can only vote once from each IP address, so make sure you're casting the votes you want to be casting. Tell your friends, and get voting!