From SAS Rogue Heroes to hero on the touchline in soccer hit play Dear England. actor Gwilym Lee will lead the players out on the Lowry stage (May 29-June 29) as England manager Gareth Southgate as the acclaimed National Theatre play arrives as a highlight of the Salford venue's spring season.
Gwilym is best known for playing legendary Queen guitarist Brian May in the award-winning film Bohemian Rhapsody, as well as Grigor Dymov in hit Hulu show The Great. He can currently be seen in Robert Zemeckis’ latest feature, Here, with Tom Hanks and joins the second season of BBC One’s SAS: Rogue Heroes which airs from January 1.
Written by James Graham (Punch, This House, Quiz, Brexit: The Uncivil War, Sherwood), Dear England is an epic examination of the nation and the game, first seen at the National in 2023 but now updated, following the 2024 UEFA Euro tournament, to reflect Southgate’s final chapter as England manager.
The country that gave the world football has since delivered a painful pattern of loss. Why can’t England’s men win at their own game?
Gwilym said: "I can’t say I grew up with football in my bones, but even I was swept up on the wave of excitement and optimism that this team, under Gareth Southgate, created. They struck a chord beyond the world of football and started a conversation about things like identity, leadership and Englishness that James Graham encapsulates in this play."
Dear England was originally commissioned by the National Theatre and had its world premiere there in June 2023. Following a sold-out run it transferred to the West End, where it broke box-office records. The show was subsequently screened almost 2,500 times in cinemas across the UK, and has been commissioned as a four-part drama by the BBC.
Dear England will play the National Theatre’s Olivier theatre in March, before its regional exclusive four weeks at the Lowry.
More info and tickets here