Roy Hudd and Nichola McAuliffe to lead cast of UK tour of Waiting for God

Initial casting has been announced for the premiere stage production of Michael Aitkens' Waiting for God.

Olivier Award-winners Roy Hudd and Nichola McAuliffe will star in the tour which opens at the Broadway Theatre, Letchworth on 20 April.

Directed by David Grindley (Tony Award-winner for Journey's End), Waiting For God is based on Aitkens' BAFTA-nominated BBC series about the challenges of growing old. The play, which is set in a retirement home, brings the series' well known characters into the 21st century and the 'era of the silver surfer'.

Hudd, who celebrates his 81st birthday this year, is a veteran stage performer who has appeared alongside the likes of Max Miller, Danny La Rue and Lionel Blair. Most recently he has starred in Wilton's Music Hall's pantomime, Mother Goose.

McAuliffe is best known for her role in the ITV sitcom Surgical Spirit. She won the Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical in 1988 for her role in Kiss Me, Kate.

Waiting for God runs at the Broadway Theatre, Letchworth from 20 to 22 April, before touring to Eastbourne, Guildford, Ipswich, Bath, Malvern, Poole, Windsor, Blackpool, Oxford and Salford.