One Man, Two Guvnors gets a new leading man

Hit comedy One Man, Two Guvnors is to transfer to a new West End home, with Owain Arthur taking over the lead role.

The show's current star, James Corden, is taking the play to Broadway in April.

Arthur, Corden's understudy, will play the gluttonous Francis Henshall when the play opens at the Theatre Royal Haymarket in March.

Richard Bean's play, based on Carlo Goldoni's The Servant of Two Masters, opened at the National Theatre in May.

The slapstick adaptation tells the story of a sacked skiffle musician working for two bosses in 1960s Brighton.

Directed by Nicholas Hytner, One Man, Two Guvnors opened at the Adelphi Theatre in November to rave reviews.

Michael Billington's five-star review in The Guardian praised the show's "mixture of improvisation with immaculate planning".

Arthur has also been seen in Hytner's National Theatre production of The History Boys, as well as Romeo and Juliet for the Royal Shakespeare Company, The Comedy of Errors for the Royal Exchange Theatre and Birdsong at the Comedy Theatre.

Further casting for the Theatre Royal Haymarket transfer will be announced shortly.