Tony Nominee Joanna Lumley to Play Eleanor of Aquitaine in London Mounting of The Lion in Winter

Tony-nominated actress and British TV star Joanna Lumley will likely star as Eleanor of Aquitaine in the first ever production of The Lion in Winter on the West End, according to the London Telegraph. “I’m doing The Lion in Winter with [director] Trevor Nunn,” Lumley said of the James Goldman play. “It’s the first time it has been done in England.” No details of the project have been announced.

The Lion in Winter, set amidst the politcal maneuverings at the French court of Henry II of England in 1183, first bowed on Broadway in 1966 starring Rosemary Harris as Eleanor and Robert Preston as Henry II, along with James Rado, Dennis Cooney and Christopher Walken. A 1968 film adaptation starred Peter O’Toole, Anthony Hopkins, Timothy Dalton and Best Actress Oscar winner Katharine Hepburn as Eleanor. A 1999 Broadway revival, directed by Michael Mayer, starred Laurence Fishburne as Henry and Stockard Channing as Eleanor.

Lumley recently made her Broadway debut opposite Mark Rylance and David Hyde Pierce in La Bete, a earned a 2011 Tony nomination for her performance. She is best known for playing boozy fashion director Patsy Stone on the British comedy series Absolutely Fabulous. She has also appeared on the British shows The New Avengers, Sapphire and Steel and Sensitive Skin. Her U.K. stage credits include The Cherry Orchard, Hedda Gabler, Private Lives and Blithe Spirit.