featured-image

London: Actor Ian McKellen has been taken to hospital after toppling off a London stage during a fight scene in a play. The 85-year-old known for playing Gandalf in the Lord of the Rings films and many stage roles over a six-decade career cried out in pain after the fall, according to a BBC journalist at the theatre. Sir Ian McKellen as Gandalf in The Lord Of The Rings.

McKellen was playing John Falstaff in Player Kings , a production of Henry IV, parts one and two, adapted and directed by Robert Icke, at the Noel Coward Theatre. He lost his footing and fell off the stage in a scene with the Prince of Wales and Henry Percy. The tumble startled theatregoers.



“Sir Ian seemed to trip as he moved downstage to take a more active part in the scene,” audience member Paul Critchley told the AP news agency, saying it was a shock. “He picked up momentum as he moved downstage which resulted in him falling off the stage directly in front of the audience.” The theatre was evacuated and the play was cancelled as medics treated the actor.

McKellen’s career includes playing Magneto in the X-Men films and several Shakespearean characters including Richard II, Macbeth and King Lear. He has won a Tony Award for Amadeus , several Laurence Olivier Awards and has been nominated for two Oscars and several BAFTA awards. AP More to come Find out the next TV, streaming series and movies to add to your must-sees.

Get The Watchlist delivered every Thursday ..

Back to Entertainment Page