Rowan Atkinson will return to the West End next year for the first time in 40 years, starring in “Rowan Live,” a 30-performance show featuring Mr. Bean, Blackadder, and other iconic characters from his career, running from February 8 to March 13, 2027, at London’s Gillian Lynne Theatre.
Rowan Atkinson, 71, is set to revive his most famous comedy characters in a West End show titled Rowan Live, marking his first return to the stage since starring in a revival of Simon Gray’s award-winning play Quartermaine’s Terms in 2013. The production, which will run for 30 performances from February 8 to March 13, 2027, at London’s Gillian Lynne Theatre, will include sketches from his early career, new material, and collaborations with long-time partners Richard Curtis, Ben Elton, and composer Howard Goodall. The venue, currently hosting My Neighbour Totoro, which ends on January 3, before Rowan Live begins.
A Nostalgic Return to Comedy Roots
Atkinson, known for his work on Not the Nine O’Clock News, Blackadder, and Mr. Bean, described the show as part of a show that will include the very best of Rowan on stage – all his voices, shapes, faces and characters.
He said, It is 40 years since I last did a comedy sketch show in the West End,
adding that he thought it would be fun to perform again the sketches that began it all for myself and Richard Curtis, and in which my most well-known characters originated, alongside some surprise new material written especially for this show.
The Guardian reported.
The show will feature reimagined versions of classic characters, including Mr. Bean, Blackadder, and Gerald the Gorilla from Not the Nine O’Clock News. Atkinson also reprised the role for the 2012 London Olympic Games opening ceremony and performed at a Prince’s Trust gala event, We Are Most Amused, at the Royal Albert Hall in 2012 that unveiled a new Blackadder sketch centred around the financial crisis. I thought it would be fun to perform again the sketches that began it all,
he said, referencing his early collaborations with Curtis and Goodall at Oxford University. The production will include a priest’s vestments, Mr. Bean’s suit, a gorilla mask, and Blackadder’s Elizabethan garbs, all pulled from a dressing-up box featured in promotional material.
Atkinson had a one-man show in the West End in 1981, at the age of 26, and another one five years later, which led the Guardian’s Michael Billington to report: He can look like a damaged cherub, an establishment smoothy, a country vicar, but underneath you glimpse devilry, anarchy and rage.
His 2012 appearance at the Royal Albert Hall for a Prince’s Trust gala event included a Blackadder sketch centred around the financial crisis, and he incorporated the character in a live comedy tour as well as reprising it for the 2012 London Olympic Games opening ceremony. The Gillian Lynne Theatre, where Rowan Live will run, is currently home to My Neighbour Totoro.
Collaborations and Legacy
Richard Curtis, who has worked with Atkinson since their Oxford days, called the show a joy and honour
and praised Atkinson’s unique accuracy and comic genius.
Curtis, who worked with Atkinson on Blackadder and Mr. Bean, noted, I first saw Rowan perform on stage in 1976, 50 years ago – and it was instantly clear to all of us that we were watching a unique, once-in-a-lifetime talent.
Curtis, an award-winning screenwriter, producer and director known for films such as Love Instead, Notting Hill and Four Weddings And A Funeral, collaborated with Atkinson on Blackadder and Mr. Bean after meeting him at Oxford University. Howard Goodall, the composer for Rowan Live, and director Raz Shaw will join the production, which is presented by Playful Productions in association with PBJ Management. The show also marks Atkinson’s first West End stage production since starring in a revival of Simon Gray’s award-winning play Quartermaine’s Terms in 2013. Oxford Mail noted.
Atkinson made his TV debut in 1979 on sketch show Not the Nine O’Clock News alongside Pamela Stephenson, Mel Smith and Griff Rhys Jones, giving us memorable characters like his congregation-berating vicar and the surprisingly eloquent gorilla Gerald. The show featured the likes of Tony Robinson, Tim McInnerny, Hugh Laurie, Stephen Fry, Miranda Richardson and Miriam Margolyes.
Tickets Go On Sale For Rowan Live
Tickets for Rowan Live go on general sale at 12pm on Wednesday, October 7, after priority booking opens. The show’s announcement has reignited interest in Atkinson’s classic characters, particularly Mr. Bean, who last popped up in 2017 Chinese film Top Funny Comedian: The Movie, in which Atkinson made a cameo as the character. LBC reported.
Atkinson has made it clear in the past that he would never revive the character for a full project, said, I’m not saying never, but it’s certainly not in the realms of my thinking at the moment… 95 per cent of people who say hello to me on the street refer to me as Mr Bean, and that’s fine.
Female First quoted him. His 2012 Blackadder sketch at the Royal Albert Hall featured Blackadder as the chief executive of a bank, while co-star Tony Robinson appeared as his gardener.
Atkinson boasts an impressive collection including a 1964 Ford Falcon Sprint, 1939 BMW 328 Roadster and a Honda NSX. Rowan Atkinson has also enjoyed major success with his Johnny English movies – a fourth is reported to be in production in the UK and Malta.
The show’s promotional material features the Johnny English performer pulling out a priest vestment, his iconic Mr Bean suit, a gorilla mask, and Blackadder’s Elizabethan garbs from a chest, with a gorilla mask nodding to the sketch from Not the Nine O’Clock News, where Mr Atkinson played Gerald the gorilla. A professor, played by Mel Smith, says the animal was completely wild
when they captured it. “Wild?” retorts Gerald. Atkinson’s return to the West End underscores his enduring influence on British comedy, blending nostalgia with fresh material for a new generation of audiences.