The 39 Steps - The Everyman, Cheltenham

Tuesday 12th January 2010

A handsome hero, daring acts of espionage, beautiful women and double-crossing agents – art is imitating life in Cheltenham.

Classic spy thriller The 39 Steps is at The Everyman from January 18 to 23.

But however dramatic the story, which is based on Alfred Hitchcock’s 1935 film, it will struggle to match the real-life experiences of the lead actor’s great uncle.

Dugald Bruce-Lockhart plays Hannay and is the great nephew of Robert “Bertie” Bruce Lockhart.

Bertie served as British Vice Consul in Moscow from 1911 to 1917 and was sent home just before the October revolution on account of an unsuitable extramarital affair.

Bertie returned in 1918 as an unofficial representative of the British government to the new Bolshevik leaders.

During that year he was revealed to be a secret agent and implicated in an attempt to assassinate Lenin when the new Russian leader was shot at point blank range.

The plot was dubbed the Lockhart Plot and Bertie was imprisoned in the Kremlin.

It was a career path that Dugald admired for some time.

“I studied German and politics because I thought the Foreign Office was going to be my calling. My father worked there too,” he said.

“I ended up becoming an actor but at least playing Hannay, I got to do it my own way.”

He said he had a great respect for Bertie, and for Hannay, as he could relate to both of them.

“I had a similar background to Bertie – growing up all over the world, boarding school and working abroad,” he said.

“And with Hannay, he describes wondering what to do next as he returns home. As an actor, I can relate to that feeling.”

The 39 Steps brings Dugald back to the Regent Street theatre, where he starred opposite Greta Scacchi in Deep Blue Sea. The multi-award winning production contains every legendary scene from the 1935 classic Hitchcock movie, including the chase scene on the Flying Scotsman, the escape on the Forth Bridge and the sensational death-defying finale.

For tickets, call 01242 572573.