Uncle Vanya release date and trailer from filmed version of West End production

A recording of Ian Rickson’s acclaimed production of Uncle Vanya is to be shown on the BBC.

The show was playing a sold-out run Harold Pinter Theatre before performances were cut short due to the pandemic.

However the piece is set to return in a new form with a special recording which will be shown at 10PM on Wednesday, 30 December on BBC Four.

For now, you can watch a first trailer below…

The production had received Olivier nominations for Toby Jones (Best Actor Award), Ian Rickson (Best Director Award), Bruno Poet (Best Lighting Design Award) and Rae Smith (Best Set Design Award).

Sonia Friedman Productions has announced they have joined forces with the BBC and partnered with Angelica Films to create a sumptuous re-interpretation of Ian Rickson’s stage production filmed on stage at the Harold Pinter Theatre.

Directed for screen by Ross MacGibbon, the film reunites nearly all of the original cast of the production – Richard Armitage, Toby Jones, Dearbhla Molloy, Anna Calder-Marshall, Rosalind Eleazar, Aimee Lou Wood and Peter Wight.

Only Ciarán Hinds was unavailable and his role has now been taken by Roger Allam (A Number, Endeavour, The Moderate Soprano, The Thick of It).

“Sonia Friedman (SFP) and Sally Angel (Angelica Films) said: “Collaborating on filming Ian Rickson’s extraordinary production of Uncle Vanya has been a wonderful and inspiring experience.

“Despite all the challenges involved in filming this production (with no social distancing on screen), the results are testament to a brilliant and dedicated cast and crew led by Ian himself alongside Ross MacGibbon.

“It is such a privilege that we are able to bring this beautiful production to a wider audience after its run was cut so brutally short by the pandemic in March.

“We would also like to thank SFP’s loyal coproducers who have so generously allowed us to pursue this vision for the filmed production and enabled it to become a reality”.