Two months ago, Ian McKellen fell off the stage during a theater performance in London. Now he tells how he feels and why he is glad he wore the suit on stage.
British actor Ian McKellen says he is still suffering from “excruciating pain in his shoulders” since his fall on stage in a London theater. “I don’t go out of the house because I’m afraid someone will bump into me,” the 85-year-old told the British magazine “Saga.” His broken wrist and injured vertebrae have still not healed.
McKellen, who is best known for his role as the magician Gandalf in the “Lord of the Rings” films, fell from the stage during a performance of the play “Player Kings” in London’s West End in mid-June.
For his role in the play, he wore a padded suit that made him look fatter, McKellen said. “And that saved my ribs and other joints. So I was really lucky.”
“Like I’m on a skateboard”
The Briton said the incident had shaken him up. “I have to keep reassuring myself that I’m not too old to act and that it was just a damn accident.”
During a fight scene, he says, his foot got caught in a chair. “And as I was trying to get it off, I started sliding on a newspaper that was scattered across the stage, like I was on a skateboard.” He slipped down a step “and then onto the lap of someone in the front row.” Since his accident, his role in the play “Player Kings” has been played by his stand-in actor, David Semark.
Source: Stern
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