Tom, being cradled deep in Ken's bosom; never has his PR been this good. But who else would be as loving as a mentor who's also had his ups and downs.
"Kenneth Branagh interview: 'Tom Hiddleston and I were always honest about Hamlet' "
Excerpts:
Tickets for his pop-up performance at RADA – allocated by ballot for the three-week run – have been like gold dust and there has been much wailing and teeth gnashing from those, including critics, excluded from this collector’s item event. Even the Guardian’s film critic pleaded for the production to be “beamed into Britain’s movie theatres”.
That’s not going to happen, Sir Ken affirms as the final performances loom this weekend, arguing that the 160-seater Vanbrugh “isn’t set up to do a big-screen transfer – though I embrace that idea in other venues. I am pro accessibility”. He also rules out the production having a further life. “We have been honest from the word go. No one was in an option to go to the West End – and there have been no conversations with Tom about doing it again down the line.”
Rather incredibly, neither he nor Hiddleston seems to have fully anticipated the demand. “I’m very, very surprised at the amount of attention it has got,” he confesses, suavely dressed in dark blue blazer and jeans, still boyish at 56. His leading man even worried there might be empty seats. “We thought we should do a ballot, because we knew he had fans, but Tom was very sweet about it and genuinely asked ‘Do you think we’ll sell out?’”
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For Hiddleston, a formidable Coriolanus at the Donmar in 2013, the challenge was to stretch himself at close quarters: “He wanted to discover an emotional depth that might have surprised people who consider him a cerebral actor.” In an interpolated opening scene, the audience sees the black clad prince of Denmark at the piano mourning his dead father in song – “He’s this raw, grieving thing,” says Branagh.
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As for Hiddleston, fans shouldn’t feel distraught. “I’ve played Hamlet in four different productions, Derek Jacobi played it hundreds of times. And I’m sure Tom is interested in playing Benedick and Richard III. So, the public need to be assured that there will be a lot of pleasure coming our way.” Watch this space.