Back On: Stephen Fry To Star In First Play Since 1995

Stephen Fry To Star In First Play Since Walk Out

Stephen Fry is to return to stage drama 17 years after he famously walked out of a West End production and fled the country.

The broadcaster has been cast in a production of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night at the Globe Theatre later this year.

He will play Malvolio opposite Mark Rylance, who will play Olivia, when the play opens for a three-week run on 22 September.

Fry abruptly left the West End run of Cell Mates - in which he was appearing opposite Rik Mayall - in 1995 and headed to Belgium. He has since explained the departure on bipolar disorder.

He has gone on to make some live stage appearances, including one-man spoken shows and hosting numerous events including Sunday's film Baftas, but has not done any lengthy drama runs.

Speaking of the time he went Awol, he has said: "That was play fright, not stage fright, it's a very different thing."

Fry, also host of BBC panel show QI, has been seen in many screen dramas over the years, including his Golden Globe-nominated performance in Wilde.

He will soon be seen in BBC Dickensian comedy The Bleak Old Shop Of Stuff, following a Christmas special.

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