David Tennant and Patrick Stewart star in the Royal Shakespeare Company production of Hamlet, Shakespeare’s famous tragedy.

In Elsinore, Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, grieves for his father. His mother has already re-married, taking Hamlet’s uncle Claudius for a husband. When the ghost of Hamlet’s father appears one night and tells his son a tale of betrayal, the young prince sets about seeking vengeance, feigning an ‘antic disposition’ in order to get to the truth. Shakespeare’s great play explores themes of revenge, madness and corruption.

Tennant is best known for his current TV role as Dr Who, though he has numerous stage credits including playing Romeo for the Royal Shakespeare Company and appearing in The Pillowman at the National Theatre.

Stewart, who plays Claudius, is also well known for a sci-fi role, playing Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation. An RSC veteran, he has recently appeared in Macbeth, The Tempest and Anthony And Cleopatra in London.

The cast also includes Mariah Gale as Ophelia, Oliver Ford Davies as Polonius and Penny Downie as Hamlet’s mother Gertrude.

RSC Chief Associate Director Gregory Doran has previously brought productions of Antony And Cleopatra, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Othello to London. His other work includes The Canterbury Tales and the York Mystery Plays.

This production of Hamlet comes to London after a much-anticipated, sell-out run in Stratford-Upon-Avon.

Following surgery for a prolapsed disc, David Tennant returns to the production for its final London week. His health will be monitored daily, so theatregoers are advised to check www.rsc.org.uk for the latest information.