Film

Lord of the Rings star Sir Ian McKellen shares heartbreaking health update

Sep 03
Written by Charlie Duncan

Sir Ian McKellen at the Player Kings press night

Sir Ian McKellen has issued another update on his health after his stage tumble (Getty Images)

Sir Ian McKellen has shared a heartbreaking health update months after falling off stage during a performance of Player Kings in June.

Ian McKellen, best known for appearing as Magneto in the original X-Men franchise and Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings, fell from the stage during a fight scene in an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Henry IV, Parts One and Two at the Noël Coward theatre.

The 85-year-old was playing Falstaff, and though he was set to make a “speedy and full recovery” following his fall, which caused a fractured wrist and chipped vertebrae, he was later reported as still experiencing “agonising pains” two months later.

He has now offered a further health update on his general health during an interview with BBC Breakfast.

“I forget names … When you’re older you’ve got more to remember than people who are young,” he explained. “Nevertheless, it’s a nuisance when you can’t remember your best friend’s name or forget your telephone number.”

McKellen also told BBC Breakfast (2 September) that he has no plans to retire from acting, saying: “What else would I be doing if I wasn’t working? I shall take the rest of the year off and then get back to work in January.

“Just keep at it as long as the legs and the lungs and the mind keep working.”

Richard Coyle, Sir Ian McKellen and Toheeb Jimoh bow at the curtain call during the press night of Player Kings (Dave Benett)

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McKellen stars as the titular critic Jimmy Erskine – a gay man in the 1930s.

“Queer would be the word in those days,” McKellen, who is gay, mused. “That was not only unfashionable, but a secret you had to hold close to your breast. And if other people discovered your secret, you could get in trouble with the law.”

McKellen then said that he “regretted” not coming out before, though he did so in 1988 to campaign against Clause 28.

“It was only when I was mature enough and goaded enough to get angry… that I took my life into my own hands,” he said.

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McKellen also told BBC Breakfast that he was keen to reprise his role in the next Lord of the Rings film in 2026, subtitled: The Hunt for Gollum.

“I”ve had some indication from the powers that be, that Gandalf will make an appearance. And I’m not letting anybody else put on the pointy hat and the beard if I can help it.”