Johnny Vegas and Lucy Beaumont are to star in a new production of the comic play Road.
Vegas – who is currently starring a stage version of the sitcom Ideal –will play the narrator Scullery, a role that has previously been taken by Ian Dury and Edward Tudor Pole.
Road was the first play written by Jim Cartwright, 40 years ago, and depicts the lives of people in a deprived working-class area of Lancashire during Margaret Thatcher’s government.
The revival at The Royal Exchange in Manchester also features Dinnerladies' Shobna Gulati, plus Tom Courtenay in a pre-recorded video segment.
Vegas previously played Beaumont's fictional stepdad in UKTV’s Meet The Richardsons mockumentary (pictured above) – and the pair also took part in the World's Most Dangerous Roads together, driving through Montenegro .
At the time Beaumont said: ‘What started out as a white-knuckle ride turned out to be a spiritual experience which cemented that me and Johnny will be lifelong friends.’
Before becoming a stand-up Beaumont had a brief acting career touring with Hull Truck Theatre, York Theatre Royal and West Yorkshire Playhouse.
The revival of Road is part of the Royal Exchange’s 50th anniversary season, and will run from February 13 to March 14. Tickets go on sale on September 29.
The season also includes Shameless star David Threlfall taking on King Lear and a revival of Noel Coward's Private Lives.
Some of Road takes place in promenade style around the Royal Exchange building before the audience take their seats in the theatre.
The description reads: ‘From dusk till dawn, the hopelessly hilarious and divinely desperate laugh, sing, dance and eat chips – all searching for something different. Jim Cartwright’s award-winning masterpiece invites you to join the inhabitants of this derelict northern road on an unforgettable journey. Shockingly relevant to our lives today, the play’s visceral, eloquent poetry paints a tough world with tenderness.’
