Sir Simon Russell Beale, the 65-year-old actor best known for his role as Ser Simon Strong in the Game of Thrones spin-off House of the Dragon, has been diagnosed with colon cancer. The acclaimed performer, who has also appeared in films such as My Week with Marilyn, Mary Queen of Scots, and The Death of Stalin, kept his health battle secret for eight months after withdrawing from a Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) production due to 'ill health' in September.
Diagnosis and Hospitalisation
Speaking at an event at The Delaunay restaurant in London this week, Beale revealed that he was hospitalised after completing work on House of the Dragon, where doctors discovered he had colon cancer. 'I've decided to tell everybody... I did the run [of Titus Andronicus] in Stratford, then House of the Dragon, and then had to be taken to hospital and they found that I had colon cancer,' he explained.
Impact on Work and Personal Life
Beale described his health struggle as 'a bore' and expressed frustration at missing out on professional opportunities. 'The last eight months have been, well it's a bit tricky actually, it's a bore obviously, but it's also tricky dropping out of things, which I've never done before,' he admitted. He was particularly heartbroken to withdraw from the London run of Titus Andronicus last year, a decision that pained him deeply.
Nevertheless, Beale is determined to return to work. He has signed up to narrate a puppet show version of Shakespeare's Venus and Adonis, which will tour the UK over the summer. 'It broke my heart dropping out of Titus because it was such a good show, but that's [the cancer diagnosis] why I didn't do it at Hampstead. At the moment I'm at that funny stage of thinking, do I dare risk it? I've decided to risk it, I'm starting again next week,' he said.
Replacement in Titus Andronicus
Beale dropped out of Titus Andronicus just two weeks before the curtain was due to go up at the Hampstead Theatre, with John Hodgkinson stepping in to replace him. A joint statement from the RSC and the theatre at the time cited 'ill health' as the reason for his departure. Director Max Webster added, 'As a company we're all so sorry that Simon Russell Beale has had to step back from his role in Titus Andronicus. We all want to send him our very best wishes for a speedy recovery.'
House of the Dragon Season Three
The news of Beale's diagnosis comes as the release date for the third season of House of the Dragon was confirmed this week, accompanied by a high-octane teaser trailer. The prequel to HBO's smash-hit Game of Thrones, which first aired in 2022, will return for an eight-episode third season starting June 22 on HBO Max, with episodes airing weekly until the finale on August 10.
Major cast members returning for season three include Matt Smith, Emma D'Arcy, Olivia Cooke, Steve Toussaint, Rhys Ifans, Fabien Frankel, Ewan Mitchell, Tom Glynn-Carney, Sonoya Mizuno, Harry Collett, Bethany Antonia, Phoebe Campbell, Phia Saban, Jefferson Hall, Matthew Needham, and James Norton. The ensemble also features Tom Bennett, Kieran Bew, Kurt Egyiawan, Freddie Fox, Clinton Liberty, Gayle Rankin, Abubakar Salim, Tom Cullen, Tommy Flanagan, Dan Fogler, Joplin Sibtain, and Barry Sloane.
Fans have expressed excitement over the violent season three trailer, which depicts warring soldiers being butchered and burned alive, signalling an escalation of the conflict between the Blacks and the Greens.
