Top TV faces will join the inmates of The Shawshank Redemption this September

Just announced!

A TRIO OF TOP TV STARS have now been locked in to star in the captivating new stage production of THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION at Blackpool Grand Theatre this September.

Bill Kenwright Ltd will present the powerful stage adaptation of Stephen King’s legendary short story from Tuesday 23 September to Saturday 27 September starring Strictly Come Dancing champion and talented TV actor Joe McFadden (Raf in Holby City, PC Joe Mason in Heartbeat) in the role of the wrongly convicted Andy Dufresne.

Joe will be joined by popular stage and screen actors Ben Onwukwe (Recall McKenzie in London’s Burning) as inmate Ellis ‘Red’ Redding and Bill Ward (Charlie Stubbs in Coronation Street) as the corrupt prison warden Stammas in this thrilling production, which powerfully examines desperation, injustice, friendship and hope behind the claustrophobic bars of a maximum-security facility.

Despite protests of his innocence, Andy Dufresne is handed a double life sentence for the brutal murders of his wife and her lover. Incarcerated in the notorious Shawshank facility, he quickly learns that no one can survive alone.

Andy strikes up an unlikely friendship with the prison fixer Red, and things start to take a slight turn for the better. However, when Warden Stammas decides to bully Andy into subservience and exploit his talents for accountancy, a desperate plan is quietly hatched…

Joe McFadden’s many television credits include Sex, Chips & Rock’n’Roll, PC Joe Mason in Heartbeat and Raf in Holby City and Joe also famously competed in the 2017 season of BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing and went on to win the glitterball trophy with professional partner Katya Jones. Recent acclaimed stage credits include 2:22 at the Gielgud Theatre and UK tours of The Rocky Horror Show and Agatha Christie’s The Mirror Crack’d.

Boasting an illustrious 30-year stage career, Ben Onwukwe has been seen in leading roles with the RSC and the Royal Court, as well as 11 years on TV as Recall McKenzie in London’s Burning and, more recently, the role of Jackson Donckers in Professor T. He now reprises his critically acclaimed performance as Ellis ‘Red’ Redding in The Shawshank Redemption, which he first played in the production’s 2016 tour. 

Bill Ward is best known for his long-running performances as Charlie Stubbs in Coronation Street and James Barton in Emmerdale. Theatre credits include Everyone’s Talking About Jamie, Million Dollar Quartet and Spamalot in the West End and host recently bared all as Gerald in the UK tour of The Full Monty.

The talented cast is completed by top theatre actors Graham Elwell (Bryan Hadley), Ashley D Gayle (Rooster), Jeffrey Harmer (Entwistle), Kyle Harrison-Pope (Tommy Williams), Kenneth Jay (Brooksie), Sean Kingsley (Bogs Diamond), Fernando Mariano (Rico), Aein Nasseri (Nelson) and Owen Oldroyd (Dawkins).

The Shawshank Redemption is based on Stephen King’s gripping 1982 novella Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption and was famously adapted for the big screen in 1994 starring Tim Robbins as Andy and Morgan Freeman as Red and was nominated for seven Academy Awards. It still sits at the top of the IMDb chart of 250 Top Movies to this day and is regarded as one of the best films ever made, with The National Film Registry citing the film as "culturally, historically and aesthetically significant".

Plan your escape to the theatre this year to see this magnificent tale of friendship and resilience live on the Grand stage…

The Shawshank Redemption starring Joe McFadden (Raf in Holby City, PC Joe Mason in Heartbeat), Ben Onwukwe (Recall McKenzie in London’s Burning) and Bill Ward (Charlie Stubbs in Coronation Street) is at Blackpool Grand Theatre from Tuesday 23 September to Saturday 27 September with matinee and evening performances.

Tickets from £15 with concessions for 1894 Club members and Friends of The Grand. Group rates are also available.

Please call the Grand Theatre Box Office on 01253 290190 or visit www.blackpoolgrand.co.uk for full listings, bookings and further information.

LISTINGS

The Shawshank Redemption – Tue 23 Sep to Sat 27 Sep

Thu & Sat matinee at 2.30pm

Grand Theatre, 33 Church Street, Blackpool FY1 1HT

Box Office 01253 290 190

blackpoolgrand.co.uk

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