Jack Thorne’s new play, When Winston Went To War With The Wireless, has secured its leads ahead of its launch at Donmar Warehouse.
Stephen Campbell Moore will play John Reith and Adrian Scarborough will play Winston Churchill in this world premiere by Bafta and Olivier Award-winning Thorne. The play is directed by Katy Rudd (Ocean at the End of the Lane, Eureka Day).
In May 1926, Britain grinds to a halt, as workers down tools for The General Strike. With the printing presses shut down, the only sources of news are the government’s The British Gazette, edited by Chancellor of the Exchequer Winston Churchill, and the independent, fledgling British Broadcasting Company, led by John Reith. What follows is a fierce battle for control of the news and who gets to define the truth.
Campbell Moore’s theatre credits include Berenice at the Donmar, Consent, Clybourne Park, Chimerica, All My Sons and The History Boys. On TV he’s recently appeared in Litvinenko, The Confessions of Frannie Langton, War of the Worlds and The Child in Time.
Scarborough won an Olivier for his performance in Leopoldstadt. His prolific stage career includes Accidental Death of an Anarchist and To the Green Fields Beyond at the Donmar, as well as productions at the National Theatre including After the Dance, The Habit of Art, King Lear and Henry IV Parts I & II. His TV appearances include Bloods, Gavin and Stacey, Sanditon and Killing Eve. Films include Vera Drake and Gosford Park.
The creative team also includes designer Laura Hopkins (Rockets and Blue Lights), sound designers Ben and Max Ringham (Blindness, Prima Facie), lighting designer Howard Hudson (& Juliet, Orlando), movement director Scott Graham (Frantic Assembly, Olivier Award winner for The Curious Incident…), composer Gary Yershon (Art, The God of Carnage) and casting director Anna Cooper.