Love, Loss And Gandalf

Hes the finest living Shakespearean actor and has thrilled a new generation as enigmatic wizard Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings. As a film of his life lights up the silver screen, Juliet Rieden talks to Sir Ian McKellen about the pain of losing his mother, how coming out changed his life and the unexpected fun of planning his own funeral.

It’s almost midnight and Sir Ian McKellen has just arrived home from his latest triumph. He’s playing King Lear in London’s West End. The play is more than three hours long with six performances a week. Quite a feat for a 79-year-old, but aside from a slight hoarseness in those mellifluous tones, recognisable world-over for wizard Gandalf’s booming declaration “You shall not pass!”, Sir Ian is surprisingly alert. Part of that is down to his secret weapon – Pilates – and part, he says, is thanks to the Bard.

“Shakespeare is very kind to King Lear. He gets a nice big break in the middle. So I sometimes manage to catch a nap, have a bit of sleep, and start up again. I don’t feel tired at the end of the evening.”

This is likely to be Sir Ian’s last big Shakespeare role. “Of the leading parts, there isn’t anything I really want to do,” he tells me,

so tickets are like gold dust as his multifarious fans – theatre lovers, tourists, The Lord of the Rings and X-Men geeks, rainbow warriors, the entire acting fraternity – all try to catch the swansong which is garnering rave reviews. But don’t panic, it’s not Sir Ian’s final curtain!

“I’m still alive and I can still work, so I’m still peddling around and that’s essential if you’re going to act. I’m not stopping acting, no,” he quickly adds.

But in addition to Lear, there is a notable sense of legacy to Ian McKellen’s current portfolio, though not entirely by design, he explains.