James Corden delays start of play to watch England’s penalty shootout
James Corden delayed the start of his play The Constituent on Saturday to watch the penalty shootout between England and Switzerland – watch footage below.
On Saturday night, The Constituent starring James Corden was set to begin at London’s Old Vic Theatre right as England and Switzerland were about to begin their penalty shootout for the Euros quarter-finals match.
Per the BBC and Guardian, fans in attendance were watching the intense shootout on their mobile phones – as were Corden and his cast mates. After hearing cheers from the auditorium, Corden realised that they had to delay the play by a few minutes to finish the game with the audience.
Surprise at the Old Vic as James Corden delays the start of his play The Constituent so we could watch the England penalties. pic.twitter.com/SMF5RUaVUI
— Mark Popescu (@MarkPopescu1) July 7, 2024
Corden told The Guardian: “When it got to extra time, we put on our costumes. The extra time finished about three minutes before the play was due to begin. We thought: ‘Oh man, this is tough but we’ve got to start.’”
He continued: “Then we heard a ‘Yessss’ from the audience, and we looked at each other and said: ‘They’re all watching it.’ We looked out and there were loads of little lit-up phones in the audience.”
“It wasn’t the time to start a serious play about serious issues. So me and Anna and Zach went out on stage with an iPad and were commentating [on the shootout]. It was really wonderful, alive, a glorious collective experience. One of my favourite moments that I’ve ever had really,” told the publication in conclusion.
@TrentAA When James Corden delays the start of his London play do the audience can watch the penalty shoot out pic.twitter.com/8CBiIfVIPD
— Pauline Munro (@PaulineAMunro) July 6, 2024
The play began 10 minutes after its scheduled start time, but people in attendance didn’t seem to mind, according to two attendees. Audience members Jack and Rachel told the Guardian that they could see “about 20 or 30 people had their phones out, and others were looking over their shoulders. There was a bit of chatter about whether the play might be delayed. Corden is quite a big football fan.”
Rachel added that the atmosphere was tense in the theatre and they weren’t sure if interrupting the penalties for a play following serious topics would be the right move. Corden and his co-stars then walked on stage with iPads and began commentating the penalties, before celebrating with the audience and then rushing offstage to prepare for the play. Jack said: “Corden played it very well, he was quite charming and he engaged the audience. There were lots of cheers and applause.”
In other Corden-related news, Gavin & Stacey is set to return this year for its last-ever episode, it has been confirmed. The much-loved sitcom will conclude on Christmas Day 2024 on BBC One and iPlayer, following reports that another special was in the works in February.
Gavin & Stacey ran for three seasons between 2007 and 2010, and returned for a Christmas special in 2019. The latest episode ended on a cliffhanger; Nessa (Jones) proposed to Smithy (Corden), with the scene concluding before he could give an answer.
In Euros-related news, former One Direction star Louis Tomlinson brought a massive flatscreen TV to Glastonbury to watch the England match against Slovakia on June 30. Tomlinson apparently left the site to purchase the screen at Argos that morning, adding: “It’s the second screen I’ve bought. The first one cracked. I wasn’t going to take credit for it if we lost in normal time but now that we’ve equalised I’m happy to.”
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Surej Singh
NME
