Michelle Collins Will Star In HOW LOVE IS SPELT at Southwark Playhouse

Michelle Collins will star as Marion in the first major revival of Chloë Moss's play HOW LOVE IS SPELT, which opens at Southwark Playhouse on Wednesday 4th September and runs until Saturday 28th September, with a national press night on Friday 6th September.

Also joining the cast are Nigel Boyle (Line of Duty, Peaky Blinders), Benjamin O'Mahony (BBC's Ripper Street), Yana Penrose (A Midsummer Night's Dream, Regent's Park Open Air Theatre), Larner Wallace-Taylor (An Inspector Calls, UK tour), and Duncan Moore (Windows and Caste, Finborough Theatre).

During her 30-year career, Michelle Collins has worked extensively in television, film, and theatre. Although perhaps best known for her leading roles in two of Britain's most popular soaps, EastEnders and Coronation Street, Michelle has a host of other notable television credits to her name including 2000 Acres of Sky, The Illustrated Mum (for which she won an International Emmy Award), Sunburn, Real Women, Rock Rivals, Doctor Who, Midsummer Murders, Death in Paradise, Miss Marple, Hotel Babylon, and The Dumping Ground. Theatre credits include The Glass Supper, Hampstead Theatre; and, UK tours of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Thoroughly Modern Millie. Most recently, Michelle appeared in My Dad's Gap Year at Park Theatre.

Nigel Boyle has been cast as Colin. Nigel is known for his series regular role DI Ian Buckells across two series of the critically acclaimed BBC drama Line of Duty. His other screen credits include series regular DS Anthony Reynolds in ITV's Home Fires, The End of the F**king World (Netflix), Alan Partridge: This Time (BBC), Peaky Blinders for Tiger Aspect, and Humans (Channel 4). On stage, Nigel has appeared in DYBBUK, Crescent Theatre, Birmingham; Circus Land, New Leicester Square Theatre; Sweet Love Remembered, Shakespeare's Globe.

The role of Joe will be played by Benjamin O'Mahony, whose acting credits include Taming of The Shrew (Hampstead Theatre), Twelfth Night, Henry V (Propeller Theatre Company, World Tour), What You Will (Shakespeare's Globe), People Like Us (The Vineyard Theatre, New York), Unrestless (Old Vic), The Cherry Orchard (Rose Theatre Kingston), King Lear (Shakespeare at the Tobacco Factory), 24 Hour Plays (Old Vic), and The Emperor Self (Arcola Theatre). On screen, Benjamin played series regular Det. Sgt. Frank Thatcher in Ripper Street (BBC), Corporal Michael Doyle in Strike Back (Sky One), and Stefan Atkins in Doctors (BBC). He also played a leading role in the award-winning film Kajaki: Kilo Two Bravo.

Yana Penrose will play Chantelle. Yana's theatre credits include A Midsummer Night's Dream (Regent's Park Open Air Theatre), An Enemy of the People (UK tour, Albany Theatre), Ballad of Rudy (Royal Exchange, Manchester), Dinosaur World (UK tour), and All The Girls Standing In The Line for The Bathroom (Theatre Royal Stratford East). For screen, credits include Humans (Channel 4) and feature films Crossing Over and Carnivore. Yana is also part of the Royal Court's Young Writers Group 2019, and is the recipient of Camden People's Theatre BAME seed commission for her debut play, Daddy Issues.

Completing the cast are Larner Wallace-Taylor (An Inspector Calls, UK tour; Doctors, BBC) and Duncan Moore (Windows and Caste, Finborough Theatre; The Nine O'Clock Service and The Green Quilt, Theatre503; Inside Out Festival, The Curve, Leicester; Political Pageantry, Old Red Lion Theatre; A Yorkshire Tragedy, White Bear Theatre). They will play Peta and Steven respectively.

HOW LOVE IS SPELT is directed by Charlotte Peters (Associate Director War Horse UK Tour and An Inspector Calls West End) and designed by Georgia de Grey, who was a finalist for the Linbury Prize for Stage Design in 2013 and nominated for an Off-West End award for her set design for Alkaline at the Park Theatre.

Set in 2004, HOW LOVE IS SPELT tells the story of Peta, who's new in town and ready for whatever London has to throw at her. She's looking for romance, for friendship, for exciting people to lead her on big adventures.

This nostalgic and honest meditation on love and relationships from Susan Smith Blackburn Prize-winning playwright Chloë Moss (This Wide Night, Soho Theatre; Dickensian, BBC) was first produced and performed at the Bush Theatre in 2004.

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