Reece Shearsmith is currently wowing audiences in the West End alongside acting titan Ken Stott, and TVO readers are in with a chance to see the show for free!

The award winning duo come together as lead actor “Sir” and Norman, his dresser, in this eagerly awaited revival of Ronald Harwood’s much loved play, first staged in 1980.

Both hilarious and poignant, The Dresser explores the relationship between two men who are reluctantly and inevitably co-dependent. As World War II rages, backstage in a provincial English theatre, an ageing, once-famous classical actor is troubled. Sir, the last in a dying breed of great English Shakespearean actors, is unwilling to take to the stage to deliver his renowned portrayal of King Lear. It falls to his faithful dresser Norman to rouse another great performance from him, to keep both the show and its star from falling apart.

Our good friends at The Duke of York’s Theatre and AKA have very kindly offered us the chance to let one lucky reader see the show for free, with a pair of tickets for any Mon-Thur performance of the show before it must end on January 14th.

To be in which a chance of winning, simply tell us the answer to the following question:

Ken Stott and Reece Shearsmith have both played icons of 1960s BBC Television in biographical television dramas. What are the names of both the popular comedian played by Stott, and the actor best known as an iconic science fiction character played by Shearsmith?

Email your replies to competitions@thevelvetonion.com by 11:59pm on Tuesday 8th November.

One winner will be picked at random, and contacted by AKA to arrange tickets for a performance of their choosing on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays or Thursdays between November 21st and January 12th.  For more details, see the T&C below… Good luck!

If you don’t win, or just want to see the show, you can buy tickets over yonder. For more info on the show, visit it’s official website.

This competition offers 1 pair of tickets for any performance of ‘The Dresser’ at Duke Of York’s Theatre between November 21st 2016 and January 12th 2017, on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday performances only.. The winning entry will be selected at random, from all who correctly answer the question: “Ken Stott and Reece Shearsmith have both played icons of 1960s BBC Television in biographical television dramas. What are the names of both the popular comedian played by Stott, and the actor best known as an iconic science fiction character played by Shearsmith?”  The winner will be contacted via the email address they use to enter. Details will not be shared with any additional third parties beyond The Velvet Onion, Duke Of York’s Theatre, AKA and the guest-list for the venue.  

Only entries made to competitions@thevelvetonion.com will be accepted.  The Velvet Onion will not accept entries as comments to this post, replies to our Facebook/Twitter pages, comments to any other posts in error or emails to any other email address in our domain, nor any entries received after 11:59pm on Tuesday 8th November. This competition is being run entirely by The Velvet Onion, with prizes organised by Duke Of York’s Theatre and AKA.  One entry per person. Any entrants found making multiple entries from the same IP address will be disqualified, and banned from entering further competitions run by The Velvet Onion. The judge’s decision is final. There is no monetary value to this competition and no cash alternative will be offered. The winner must choose their preferred performance to attend, and dates/performances cannot be changed, though The Duke of York’s Theatre and AKA reserve the right to select an alternate date in correspondence with the winner should their chosen date be unavailable.  The winner will be responsible for their own travel and/or related expenses. The Velvet Onion reserves the right to withdraw this competition if any overriding issues arise.