Douglas Henshall
(Picture: BBC/ITV Studios/Mark Mainz)Shetland star Douglas Henshall will play a 16th century Scottish diplomat caught up in royal intrigue in his return to the London stage.
The actor, whose previous credits include roles at the Young Vic and Donmar Warehouse, will play James Melville in Rona Monro’s play Mary at Hampstead Theatre.
Melville served Mary, Queen of Scots and was a central figure in the politics of the time.
Henshall, who plays detective Jimmy Perez in the hit crime drama, has previously appeared on stage at the north London theatre where he played Oliver Cromwell in another historical drama, 55 Days.
Mary will run from October 21 to November 26.
It is part of a new season of work unveiled at the theatre which also includes the world premiere of another drama inspired by the historical record - Linck and Mulhahn by Ruby Thomas which is set in the 18th century and inspired by records of a real romance in the court of the Kingdom of Prussia in modern-day Germany.
The theatre is currently showing the first play written by former National Theatre boss, Richard Eyre, called The Snail House, about the family life of a fictional government medical advisor which was written during lockdown.
Eyre, who led the National for a decade until 1997, said: “I have written a play before, it was performed at Hampstead Theatre Club in 1968, and my writing was described by Charles Spencer who then worked for the Evening Standard, as ‘promising’.
“It was an adaptation of a novel The Ha-Ha. This is my first original play and set in the present day - it’s something that I have been thinking about for some time, but never had the time to write. The pandemic afforded me that time and I am delighted that it is premiering back at Hampstead Theatre.”
