Leading comedic performers Adrian Edmondson, Miles Jupp, Neil Morrissey and Robert Webb will star in a 20th anniversary West End production of Tim Firth’s classic comedy Neville’s Island this autumn.
Angus Jackson’s acclaimed production, which was first seen at Chichester Festival Theatre last year, will play at the Duke of York’s Theatre from 10 October (press night 21 October) when the comedic quartet will take on the hilarious roles of four out-of-condition, out-of-their-depth businessmen on a team building exercise gone very wrong.
Shipwrecked in the Lake District, menaced by wildlife and with only a sausage between them, the foursome become unlikely explorers as they battle the elements and each other as corporate bonding descends into a hilarious carnival of squabbling, French cricket and cagoules.
The only original cast member to reprise his role, Edmondson, who came to fame for his long-running appearances in legendary comedy series The Young Ones and Bottom, will return to star as Gordon.
Like The Comic Strip Presents… creator, Edmondson’s forthcoming co-stars are similarly best known for their screen appearances, but between the trio also boast numerous credits on stage.
Actor, writer and comedian Jupp, best known for his roles in Rev, A Young Doctor’s Notebook and The Thick Of It, last appeared on the stage in the National Theatre hit People, while Men Behaving Badly star Morrissey boasts West End turns in Guys And Dolls and Acorn Antiques.
Peep Show star Webb was most recently seen in the West End in Jeeves And Wooster In Perfect Nonsense, which followed appearances on the Hampstead Theatre stage in comedy Raving and his West End debut in Neil LaBute’s Fat Pig.
Neville’s Island, which joins Firth’s long list of successes including Sign Of The Times and Calendar Girls, was first seen in the West End at the Apollo Theatre in 1994 when it received an Olivier Award for Best Comedy. The show will arrive at the Duke of York’s in time for its 20th birthday following the exit of long-running farce Jeeves And Wooster In Perfect Nonsense, which comes to an end on 20 September to head off on a UK tour.