Ian McKellen treated theatregoers to some Gandalf improv after his King Lear performance was cancelled

Sir Ian McKellen faced quite the dilemma after an injured leg prevented him from performing in King Lear on Saturday. His solution? Treating theatregoers to an impromptu Q&A and Gandalf reprise.

The Lord of The Rings star announced on Twitter that he had to bow out of the matinee Shakespeare show after “he galloped up 45 steps to catch the train” and his “leg gave way”. That meant McKellen couldn’t carry out the most strenuous parts of the play, such as hoisting a corpse across stage.

https://twitter.com/IanMcKellen/status/1026140348341411841

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QvatznQX9g&list=PLbs-Pk9dtKb-0E-dpbT70eUHE6_o8bxd5

However, as audience members awaited their ticket refunds McKellen nevertheless appeared on stage for 90 minutes as he “tried out a few new routines and some old ones – a bit of Gandalf and a couple of Shakespeare speeches”.

So, although audiences missed out on McKellen’s critically-acclaimed Lear, they instead were served a one-off “experience of a lifetime".

https://www.instagram.com/p/BmD-Fy1lumd/?utm_source=ig_twitter_share&igshid=4kzbzvs3gg7p

https://www.instagram.com/p/BmGDoBhghzU/?tagged=ianmckellen

https://twitter.com/CBCKatie/status/1025733451637567488

And McKellen even handed out Lord of the Rings trivia about the franchise’s most famous line…

https://twitter.com/holly/status/1025768394195382272

…anecdotes about Maggie Smith…

https://twitter.com/holly/status/1025771085764145152

…some solid acting advice…

https://twitter.com/holly/status/1025814934452690944

...and all without a microphone.

https://twitter.com/holly/status/1025773233524695041

https://twitter.com/holly/status/1025776075027218438

We doff our wizard’s hats in your direction, Sir Ian.

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