Two TV stars are set to reprise their roles in an acclaimed thriller show, which is returning to Windsor as part of a UK tour.
Jenny Seagrove and Simon Shepherd will take the stage in Royce Ryton’s The Anastasia File at Theatre Royal Windsor from Wednesday, September 30, to Saturday, October 3.
The production is part of the theatre’s UK tour and follows a run that was met with critical acclaim last year.
Jenny Seagrove, known for her roles in Judge John Deed and A Woman of Substance, will once again play Mrs Manahan, while Peak Practice and Midsomer Murders star Simon Shepherd returns as The Inspector.
Ms Seagrove said: "I am thrilled to be playing Anastasia Romanov again and to be sharing her fascinating story with audiences around the country.
"It is a story that gripped me from the first time I read about her and she continues to intrigue me.
"With a wonderful cast alongside me, I hope audiences will feel equally fascinated."
The play tells the story of a woman found in a Berlin canal in 1920 who claims to be Grand Duchess Anastasia, the heir to the Romanov fortune.
Inspired by the true story of Anne Manahan, whose thirty-year battle for recognition as the last surviving Romanov was one of the most popular historical mysteries of the twentieth century, the play explores the blurred lines between memory, fact and fiction.
It is directed by Roy Marsden and features lighting design by Nick Richings and sound design by Dan Samson.
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Mr Marsden said: "When Royce Ryton wrote The Anastasia File in 1978 the weight of opinion was inclined to believe that the central character Anna Anderson, or as she was later known, Mrs Manahan, was indeed the missing Romanov daughter Anastasia.
"Then, as time went on more and more research took place, strongly suggesting the opposite."
He said that while DNA evidence appeared to disprove Anderson’s claim, some, including himself, remained unconvinced.
He said: "I, along with others, have come to believe that the scientific evidence proving that Anna Anderson is not Anastasia is not as exact and as trustworthy as certain quarters would like us to believe.
"Therefore, in the absence of direct and conclusive proof, the question of whether Anna Anderson is Anastasia or not remains a mystery, a matter of personal belief."
The production is part of Theatre Royal Windsor’s UK touring season, which also includes Noël Coward’s The Marquise and Graham Greene’s Our Man in Havana.
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