WIN: Three pairs of tickets to The 39 Steps, Theatre Royal, Newcastle

Whirlwind comedy The 39 Steps lands in the region next week - and you could be there for free.

We’ve got three pairs of tickets to give away for the 10th anniversary tour, which runs at Newcastle’s Theatre Royal from Monday until July 2.

The Olivier Award-winning comedy, which will finish its tour of 24 cities in Tyneside, brings four actors and 130 characters in just under 100 minutes to the stage.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The show is based on Alfred Hitchcock’s 1935 movie and John Buchan’s 1914 spy thriller The Thirty Nine Steps and is adapted for the stage by Patrick Barlow.

It follows dashing hero Richard Hannay - complete with stiff upper lip, British gung-ho attitude and pencil moustache - in a dangerous tale of cat-and-mouse chase from London to the Scottish Highlands.

The cast for this touring production are Richard Ede (Hannay), Olivia Greene (the three women in Hannay’s life, Pamela, Annabella and Margaret) and the myriad of other roles are played with breath-taking speed by Andrew Hodges and Rob Witcomb.

After a short run at the Tricycle Theatre in London, The 39 Steps opened at the Criterion Theatre in September 2006, where it ran for nine years, and was seen by more than 1 million people.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The Thirty Nine Steps was famously adapted for the screen by Alfred Hitchcock in what is widely regarded as one of the best films from his early period.

The stage production references a number of the legendary scenes from this 1935 classic movie thriller of the same name, including the chase on the Flying Scotsman train, the escape on the Forth Road Bridge and the controversial ‘stocking and suspenders’ scene.

•The 39 Steps is at Newcastle Theatre Royal from Monday, June 27 to July 2. Tickets are available from £14.50 (a booking fee of 95p - £1.95 will apply to most tickets) and can be purchased from the Theatre Royal Box Office on 08448 11 21 21 or book online at www.theatreroyal.co.uk

•To win a pair of tickets for the show, on Tuesday, June 28, answer this question: which famous film director was responsible for the film adaptation of The 39 Steps?

A) Alfred Hitchcock

B) Steven Spielberg

C) George Lucas

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Email your answer, name and daytime contact number to [email protected]. Alternatively, send your answer and contact details on a postcard to The 39 Steps Competition, Katy Wheeler, Johnston Press North East 2nd Floor, Alexander House, 1 Mandarin Road, Rainton Bridge Business Park, Houghton, DH4 5RA

Winning entries will be drawn on the morning of Monday, June 27.