Who's that with our Jon?

Published on Thursday 7 February 2008 16:59

MEETING your heroes can often lead to massive disappointment. Many of the men and women you spend years placing on a pedestal often fail to live up to idealised expectations.

But thankfully, having spent many hours of his childhood watching in awe as Colin Baker did battle with Daleks, Cybermen and The Rani, Jonathan Broadbent was delighted to discover that the former Doctor Who star was every bit as charming as he'd hoped.

"He's fabulous," says the 30-year-old Londoner, who stars alongside another TV veteran, Liza Goddard and Baker in She Stoops to Conquer at the King's Theatre next week.

"He's a very seasoned and experienced theatre actor, although he's hugely well-known for his TV work. He's great. I was a huge Doctor Who fan when I was young and he, along with Peter Davison and Sylvester McCoy, registered as one of my Doctors. It's always quite interesting when you finally meet someone you used to watch on TV as a kid, but we've got a very happy company.

"Most of my scenes are with Liza Goddard, who's also a very experienced theatre actor. Both she and Colin have been terrific to work with. Liza plays my mother and we have a very fractious relationship – in the play."

Irish author Oliver Goldsmith's celebrated comedy, which has kept audiences in stitches since 1773, is a tale of class, courtship and dysfunctional families, with more misunderstandings than a Broons comic strip. It charts the exploits of two young men, Charles Marlow and George Hastings, and their attempts to court Kate Hardcastle and her friend Constance Neville.

A number of deceits, schemes, comic ruses and hilarious turns of plot must be played out if the two pending marriages are to conclude happily.

Broadbent's character, Tony Lumpkin is the son of Mrs Hardcastle (Goddard) and the stepson of Squire Hardcastle (Baker).

By a strange quirk of fate, Goddard and Baker were at one time married in real life. Tony is promised in marriage to his cousin, Constance, a match of which neither approves and one which he will do anything to get out of – with side-splitting consequences.

"Tony Lumpkin is one of the great parts of British comedy drama," says Broadbent. "He's a lovely character to play. He's a bit like Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream in that it's his actions that perpetuate the events of the night.

"He just can't wait to inherit his fortune – that's all he wants, and there's a lovely pay-off at the end. It's a great part. He's been played by some wonderful actors down the years.

"David Essex played him the last time the show was performed in the West End and he's also been played by Andy Serkis, Gollum from The Lord of the Rings films. The role has attracted some interesting people."

Although obviously an Englishman, Broadbent is keen to point out his Scottish roots. "My great grandmother was from Troon," he reveals. "We used to go sailing round the Western Isles every summer. We're big sailing fans in my family."

Broadbent learned how to tread the boards at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, an establishment that has seen big-screen stars such as Ewan McGregor, Orlando Bloom and Daniel Craig pass through its doors.

But it is another British actor and director whom Broadbent admires most.

"Kenneth Branagh's a bit of a hero of mine," admits the actor. "I played Mozart in Amadeus opposite Matthew Kelly, who played Salieri, a couple of years ago and he came along to see it. He met me afterwards and he was very effusive and complimentary.

"Six months later his assistant called and asked if I was available for As You Like It. It was only a small role, I was one of Brian Blessed's henchmen, but Branagh is brilliant to work for. He's very talented and he brings out the best in everyone around him."

Later in 2006, Broadbent also appeared in Branagh's big-screen version of Mozart's The Magic Flute, the filming of which had its drawbacks.

"We filmed it at a country house in Surrey near Gatwick airport," he recalls. "We had to stop filming every time a plane flew overhead."

Fortunately, Broadbent and the rest of the She Stoops to Conquer cast will have no such problems at the King's.

"It's a brilliant show," he enthuses. "I think the Scots will very much appreciate the language. It's very clever and sparky. I think we've got a little treat for you up there."

What certainly promises to be a treat for Capital audiences taking in the Birmingham Repertory Theatre and The Touring Consortium's latest production is a brand new prologue and epilogue by Tony Award-winning writer Bryony Lavery.

"Jonathan Munby, the director, wanted to add a contemporary twist to the play," says Broadbent. "The prologue and the epilogue were theatrical devices used at the time the play was written. An actor would step forward and maybe mock the fashions of the time.

"It was a bit like Have I Got News For You, where new material would be written every day. A lot of people went to the theatre to be seen, rather than to see the play, and the epilogue would often mock those people."

Without giving too much away, the lines between reality and fiction will become blurred and audiences at the King's Theatre are in for a bit of a surprise when they take their seats next week.

&#149 She Stoops to Conquer, King's Theatre, Leven Street, Tuesday to February 16, 7.30pm (2.30pm matinees on Wednesday and Saturday), 10.50-22 (7.50-19), 0131-529 6000