Multi award-winning comedy-thriller The 39 Steps has blazed a trail on how to do the West End in miniature - afterall, its cast of just 4 actors play 139 characters between them.
But as The 39 Steps enters into its 5th year as the West End and New York's longest-running comedy and celebrates becoming the longest-running show in the Criterion Theatre's 136-year history with more than 1,600 performances to date, it has another BIG reason to celebrate; its front of house signage has been recreated in LEGO bricks and erected on the front of the Criterion in the LEGOLAND theme park's Miniland London location. It is the only West End theatre to be afforded such an honour in LEGOLAND.
This week the stars of The 39 Steps visited the theme park near Windsor to officially unveil the makeover. "Ripping stuff! It's a jolly good show and looks rather smart, small yet perfectly formed if you ask me," said Hannay (David Bark- Jones). Towering over the Piccadilly Circus location like a scene from The Attack of the 50 foot Woman, he was joined by his (handcuffed) co-star Dianne Pilkington, Timothy Speyer and Jeremy Swift.
The 39 Steps' front of house signage and the addition of perfect replica posters for the production on Green Park Underground platforms on the set are the latest additions to Miniland London. The Piccadilly Circus section is built on a scale of 1:30 and contains up to 20,000 LEGO bricks. Miniland London contains a total of more than 13 million LEGO bricks. Expert model makers from Windsor, Denmark and the Czech Republic collaborated on the project and the three teams spent a staggering 24,000 hours creating London in miniature - facts that The 39 Steps' Mr Memory promised to add to his staggering collection of facts and figures.
An hilarious take on the Hitchcock classic, The 39 Steps sees our dashing hero, Richard Hannay, stumble into a dangerous tale of cat and mouse from London to Scotland. Accused of murder by Scotland Yard, pursued by enemy agents and carrying a secret that could save King and country, Hannay must solve the mystery of The 39 Steps in order to acquit himself and stop a war. Yet the most trying part of the whole tale are the women he encounters, especially Pamela, his unwilling companion to whom he ends up handcuffed during his daring escape. Entertaining audiences since 14th September 2006, the multi award-winning production contains every legendary scene from the 1935 classic Hitchcock movie thriller of the same name - including the chase on The Flying Scotsman train, the escape on the Forth Bridge, the first theatrical bi-plane crash ever staged and the sensational death- defying finale in the London Palladium, as well as the memorable and controversial ‘stockings and suspenders' scene.
The 39 Steps designs by Peter McKintosh, lighting design by Ian Scott, sound design by Mic Pool and movement by Toby Sedgwick.
The 39 Steps is presented by Edward Snape for Fiery Angel Ltd and Tricycle London Productions Ltd in association with the West Yorkshire Playhouse.
