Rupert Everett to star in John Mortimer’s ”A Voyage Around My Father” tour
© Dan Wooller
BAFTA and Golden Globe nominee Rupert Everett (My Best Friend’s Wedding, The Importance of Being Earnest, Shrek 2) will star in a new production of John Mortimer’s celebrated autobiographical play A Voyage Around My Father.
Mortimer, a British lawyer and writer, first wrote the personal piece in 1963. It explores his relationship with his father, a blind barrister who was both physically and emotionally distant from his son.
The play is structured as a series of flashbacks, with the main character, Mortimer himself, reflecting on his life with his father, who is portrayed as a witty and cantankerous man who takes pleasure in ridiculing his son’s efforts to become a writer. The play also depicts Mortimer’s struggles with his own homosexuality.
A Voyage Around My Father has been adapted for television and film several times, including a 1982 TV movie starring Laurence Olivier as the father and Alan Bates as the son, and a 2006 TV movie starring Jim Broadbent and Matthew Macfadyen.
The new production will open at Theatre Royal Bath, with performances from 28 September to 7 October 2023, before embarking on a UK tour. Venues and schedule are to be announced.
The piece is directed by Richard Eyre, with design by Bob Crowley and lighting by Hugh Vanstone.
