Line Of Duty star Adrian Dunbar and the cast of Kiss Me Kate received a standing ovation at the end of their London press night - from an audience filled with star names.
Adrian won critical acclaim and is best known to millions for his TV role as no-nonsense anti-corruption Superintendent Ted Hastings in BBC police drama Line Of Duty. But in his new stage role fans see him singing on stage in his musical theatre debut as Fred Graham in Kiss Me Kate, which has returned to the London stage.
The actor, 65, is the lead star alongside Tony Award-winning actress Stephanie J Block, singing several songs in the show during a 15-week season. At Tuesday night's press night, the audience included actor David Tennant, BGT judge Bruno Tonioli, former Strictly Come Dancing judge Arlene Phillips, Line Of Duty creator Jed Mercurio and comedian Frank Skinner.
Tennant was attending with his wife Georgia as her father Peter Davidson takes the role of the General in the Cole Porter classic musical. And all of the audience was on their feet at the end of the performance with Adrian looking delighted with the response.
Adrian and the cast received a standing ovation (Dave Benett/Getty Images)He plays it for laughs in the show whilst co-lead Block threatens to overshadow him with her incredible singing voice and vocal range. Speaking about his love of singing in the past, Adrian has said: "My mother was a fabulous soprano and I sang a lot as a young boy. I've always had a voice and I've always wanted to use it.
The rise and rise of Line of Duty actor Adrian Dunbar
"I sang a lot of boy soprano stuff and I even won prizes, but then I let it go. At the age of 15 I started a country band with friends, playing music other young people at the time thought was really stupid: Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, Hank Snow. I didn't intend to be an actor, I was going to be a singer in a band."
Adrian has previously sung on TV on The Late Late Show in Ireland and also in the ITV drama Ridley, in which he was also seen playing the piano as a jazz bar owner. Speaking to the Today programme on Radio 4 last week, Dunbar gave the impression hit BBC police drama Line Of Duty could return for another series of the police drama.
He said: “I have to be very careful because you know, we burn up the internet, if we say anything, but I mean the point is that we all want it to happen. So if it were to happen, we’d be really happy.”
And when quizzed on whether “all” included ‘Line of Duty’ writer Jed Mercurio, 58, he added: “Of course, it includes Dr Mercurio himself, who knows he might be beavering away somewhere with an idea, who knows?”
- Kiss Me Kate starring Adrian Dunbar runs until September 14 at London's Barbican Theatre with tickets from KISSMEKATEMUSICAL.COM
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