Sir Patrick Stewart: 'Even if I do a one man show, I shall perform it at the Royal Shakespeare theatre'

Sir Patrick Stewart turned 80 in lockdown and began writing his memoirs. 

He’s also been keeping busy reading out a Shakespearean sonnet a day and posting them online.

But he says that he wishes he was back with his theatrical peers in Britain fighting shoulder to shoulder to keep the sector alive.

It comes as the core business of live theatre in front of a audience still seems distant for many organisations.

Sir Stewart is in lockdown in California, he had been due to begin the second series of Star Trek Picard, but the pandemic means that is on hold. 

So he is doing his bit to help the theatre company he joined in the 60s and where he remains an Associate Artist.

Sir Stewart will be interviewed next week for the Royal Shakespeare Company’s Talking Shakespeare series, where leading lights like Dame Judi Dench, speak about their careers. 

The actor spoke to ITV News Arts Editor Nina Nannar about his concerns for British theatre right now.

When asked about his concern for theatre and social distancing and putting on shows, Sir Stewart said: "Yes you're absolutely right about regional theatre, I have read accounts of theatres that have already reached the point where they have to say we simply cannot come back and it's not just big organisations, it is throughout the country."

On returning back to theatre he said: "I've got my eye on certain roles and actually there are all sorts of roles that I would like to re-do, roles that I would like to have another look at."

He added: "It just that maybe 20 or 30 years have past and I'm not the same person who did it the first time, so I'm going to have a different view of it."

"The Royal Shakespeare company is my second home and in fact, there were periods of my life where I spent more hours at the RSC than I did in my own living room."

When asked if he would like to be back there, Sir Stewart said: "I would love to be back, in fact, listen, I will be back there, it's going to happen."

"Even if I take a leaf say out of Ian McKellen's book and put together a one man show, I shall perform it at the Royal Shakespeare theatre."