Sir Ian McKellen is returning to his home town in 2019 when he appears at the Albert Halls in Bolton on Saturday, May 25th as part of the tour to celebrate his 80th birthday.
Sir Ian explains: “The show starts with Gandalf and will probably end with an invitation to act with me on stage. In-between there will be anecdotes and acting. I open at my local arts centre in January and end up by August in Orkney.
“Live theatre has always been thrilling to me, as an actor and in the audience. Growing up in Lancashire, I was grateful to those companies who toured beyond London and I’ve always enjoyed repaying that debt by touring up and down the country myself, with the RSC, the National Theatre, Prospect Theatre, the Actors’ Company, as well as with commercial productions.
“I wanted to celebrate my 80th birthday in Bolton, where I grew up and discovered in its 3 professional theatres, a passion for acting, which has never faded.
“In the Town Hall, where my father was Borough Engineer, I’ll feel at home and grateful for all that Bolton nurtured in me at Bolton School, the Little Theatre and in Barrow Bridge where we lived close to the moors.
“All profits will help with new seating in the Albert Halls Theatre. Happy Birthday to me! See you there, I hope!”