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Barnes' People monologue series: watch the all-star cast discuss the project

The series debuts next month

| London |

28 January 2021

A variety of Peter Barnes monologues will be brought to online audiences – and you can have a first look at a shows here.

Produced by Original Theatre Company and Perfectly Normal Productions, the four-part series will star Jon Culshaw, Matthew Kelly, Jemma Redgrave and Adrian Scarborough with direction from Philip Franks and Charlotte Peters.

Available online from 18 February to 31 July, the monologues will be filmed at Theatre Royal Windsor before being made available.

Peters will direct Culshaw in Billy & Me, while Franks will direct the three other monologues, including a brand-new Barnes piece True Born Englishman, delivered by Scarborough.

Co-producer David Morley said: ""All our monologues are from Peter Barnes's work commissioned by BBC Radio 3. Rosa is from a series called Barnes' People, broadcast in 1981 and was originally performed by Judi Dench. Losing Myself and Billy And Me were from a second series on BBC Radio 3, called More Barnes' People. These aired between 1989 and 1990. Jeremy Irons was in Losing Myself and Alan Rickman played Jennings in Billy And Me. The controversial play in our four is A True Born Englishman. This was commissioned by BBC Radio 3 as part of More Barnes' People.

Watch the video here:

It was cast with Antony Sher in the role and scheduled, but when the production team referred the script to higher management, they decided not to go ahead. Peter Barnes described this as ‘banning' the play, because of its Royal Family theme, which the BBC denied."

Each monologue is 20 minutes long, and features film direction and editing by Tristan Shepherd. Sound design is by Max Pappenheim, digital production design by David Woodhead, costume supervision by Siobhan Boyd and production management by Felix Dunning.

Barnes' People is filmed at Theatre Royal Windsor with the assistance of the theatre's co-directors, Anne-Marie Woodley and Jon Woodley, technical and production manager Andi Manzi and head of lighting Will Brann.

Tickets are on sale now via the Original Theatre Company site. English subtitles are available