Bill Nighy: 'I stole Shakespeare book for drama school audition'

Actor Bill Nighy said helium stole the implicit works of William Shakespeare from a room to hole for his play schoolhouse audition.

The Oscar-nominated prima said helium applied for the Guildford School of Acting to impressment a miss but had to hole 2 pieces for the audition - 1 from a modern playwright and the different from Shakespeare.

Along with his older friend, they "stole the implicit works of Shakespeare, and we stole the implicit works of George Bernard Shaw which we thought was benignant of modern," Nighy told BBC Radio 4's This Cultural Life.

"We could person borrowed it similar everybody else, but for immoderate reason, we were benignant of processing a transgression mentality," the 74-year-old said.

Nighy said helium inadvertently learned 2 pistillate parts for the audition portion "down the pub" with his friend.

He performed the relation of Eliza Doolittle from Shaw's play Pygmalion, and the portion of Cesario successful Twelfth Night - not realising the portion was pistillate quality Viola disguised successful antheral clothing.

Despite the audition sheet looking "a spot confused" by his mentation of the brief, Nighy said helium was invited backmost "with much suitable material".

He was aboriginal accepted into the play school.

Nighy said the miss helium was trying to impressment had primitively written a missive to the play schoolhouse to summation an audition.

"She could person said astronaut and I would person fixed it a shot," helium admitted.

During his career, which saw him nominated for an Oscar past twelvemonth for his relation successful Living, Nighy has performed 2 Shakespeare plays professionally.

The archetypal was The Taming Of The Shrew astatine the Gateway Theatre successful Chester, and the 2nd was King Lear with Sir Anthony Hopkins astatine the National Theatre successful London.

He told BBC Radio 4: "I retired from Shakespeare sometime aft that... cipher took a unsighted spot of notice, but I conscionable thought, 'I can't spell done this immoderate much due to the fact that I don't person immoderate peculiar involvement successful the transportation of Shakespeare'.

"I recognize he's the top writer the satellite has ever known, but the show of it, I volition permission to different people."