Daws & Simkins bring Yes, Prime Minister back to West End

Adapted by the creators Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn, the Chichester Festival Theatre production brings the much-loved comedy series into the modern era and onto stage for the first time.

The show premiered in Chichester in summer 2010, transferring to the West End’s Gielgud Theatre in September that year. After a national tour it subsequently returned to the West End’s Apollo before moving back to the Gielgud in September 2011.

Robert Daws is best known for his role as Dr Gordon Ormerod in eight series of ITV’s The Royal. He also starred as Sam Mountjoy in John Sullivan’s Roger Roger, Tuppy Glossop in Jeeves and Wooster and Roger Dervish in the award-winning Outside Edge. His recent theatre work includes The Secret of Sherlock Holmes at the Duchess Theatre and Public Property at Trafalgar Studios.

Michael Simkins, who has played Humphrey Appleby on tour, has West End credits including playing Billy Flynn in Chicago from 2007. His has also appeared in Mamma Mia, The King and I and Off-West End in Pinter’s The Old Masters (2004) and Terence Rattigan’s Less than Kind (2011). On television, Simkins’ has played a regular character in Foyle’s War, as well as featuring in TV dramas such as A Touch of Frost, Judge John Deed and most recently, Above Suspicion: Silent Scream.

Emily Bruni will join the cast in the role of Claire Sutton and Jim Barclay will play Simon Chester. Reprising their roles from the 2012 UK tour will be Clive Hayward as Bernard Woolley, Sam Dastor as the Ambassador and Tony Boncza as Jeremy Burnham (Director General of BBC).

– Theo Bosanquet