Tom Beard will lead the cast of Howard Brenton’s Drawing The Line when it opens at the Hampstead theatre later this year.
The actor, who boasts stage appearances in King Lear at the Donmar Warehouse, Tusk Tusk at the Royal Court and Apologia at the Bush, as well as Salmon Fishing In The Yemen on screen, will take on the role of Mr Justice Cyril Radcliffe, the man summoned in 1947 to draw the border that would divide the Indian sub-continent into India and Pakistan.
He will be joined by Andrew Havill (Lord Mountbatten), whose stage credits include Farewell To The Theatre at the venue and the National Theatre production of This House, Lucy Black (Lady Mountbatten), who is reunited with the production’s director Howard Davies following their work together on Children Of The Sun at the National, and Tanveer Ghani (Ghandi), who has previously appeared on the London stage in Macbeth at the Tricycle theatre.
Paul Bazely, who is currently appearing in The Djinns Of Eidgah at the Royal Court, and Silas Carson, whose stage credits include the NT’s The Comedy Of Errors, will also appear in the production, which brings its tale of political intrigue, racial turmoil and blood feuds to the Swiss Cottage venue from 3 December to 11 January.
Completing the cast are David Annen, Abigail Cruttenden, Neil D’Souza, Salma Hoque, Rez Kempton, John Mackay, Simon Nagra, Nikesh Patel, Brendan Patricks, Shalini Peiris and Peter Singh.
Reuniting Olivier Award winner Davies with playwright Brenton following 2012’s 55 Days, Drawing The Line will open at the Hampstead theatre following Simon Paisley Day’s Raving, which opened at the venue last night.