Comedian and actor Marcus Brigstocke is to play Station Master Perks when the Olivier Award-winning production of The Railway Children returns to London this summer.
Since winning the BBC New Comedian of the Year in 1996 Brigstocke has become a fixture in British comedy, winning acclaim for his stand-up shows at the Edinburgh Festival and on tour, including God Collar, which played at London’s Vaudeville theatre in 2010. In addition to his regular appearances on Live At The Apollo and comedy quiz shows Have I Got News For You, QI and radio’s Just A Minute, Brigstocke has acting credits including sitcom The Savages and films Love Actually and Telstar. Last year he made his musical theatre debut playing King Arthur in Monty Python’s Spamalot on tour.
In joining Mike Kenny’s stage adaptation of E Nesbit’s novel The Railway Children, Brigstocke will play the role made famous by Bernard Cribbins in the 1970 film, Station Master Albert Perks.
Damian Cruden’s production was first seen at the National Railway Museum in York before coming to London last year. Staged on and around the tracks and platforms of the vacant Eurostar terminal at Waterloo Station, the production proved a hit with children and adults alike, and last Sunday picked up Best Entertainment at the 2011 Olivier Awards with MasterCard.
The production returns to the same venue from 19 June to 4 September, and once again features a real steam train borrowed from the National Railway Museum and the Old Gentleman’s Saloon Carriage that was used in the famous film.
Brigstocke is joined in the cast by David Baron, Mark Holgate, Tim Lewis, Andrew Loudon, Amy Noble, Blair Plant and Grace Rowe. Further casting is to be announced.
CB