Griff Rhys Jones and Clive Francis will are bringing I’m Sorry, Prime Minister to the West End, with the final chapter of Jonathan Lynn’s Yes, Minister heading to the Apollo Theatre in 2026.
Written and directed by Lynn, and co-directed by Michael Gyngell, the show is transferring following its run at The Barn Theatre, and runs at Theatre Royal Bath and Cambridge Arts Theatre.
Rhys Jones plays ex-Prime Minister Jim Hacker, with Francis as Sir Humphry Appleby, as the pair face up to life in retirement.
Jim Hacker is back — older, but perhaps not wiser, and still utterly baffled by the real world. Hoping for a quiet retirement from Government as the master of Hacker College, Oxford, Jim instead finds himself facing the ultimate modern crisis: cancelled by the college committee. Enter Sir Humphrey Appleby, who has lost none of his love for bureaucracy, Latin phrases, and well-timed obstruction.
Can Humphrey and Jim out manoeuvre the hostile students, the Fellows, and reality itself? Or is it finally time to say, “I’m Sorry, Prime Minister…”? Brimming with razor-sharp wit, nostalgic brilliance, and more double-speak than a press briefing, this is political comedy at its most timeless — and timely.
British comedy series Yes, Minister was written by Lynn and Antony Jay, and aired on BBC2 from 1980 to 1984. Its sequel, Yes, Prime Minister, ran from 1986 to 1988. A hugely successful stage play entitled Yes, Prime Minister was premiered at Chichester Festival Theatre in May 2010. The production transferred to the West End where it played at three different theatres and also toured the UK twice.
I’m Sorry, Prime Minister will play at the Apollo Theatre from January 30 to April 25, 2026. Tickets: I’m Sorry, Prime Minister
Top image: Griff Rhys Jones. Credit Danny Kaan (image supplied)