Star-Studded London Stage Production to Retell the Gisele Pelicot Trial

A one-off theatrical production based on the landmark Gisele Pelicot trial will bring together an unusually large ensemble of more than thirty actors and public figures for a single performance in London next month. The Pelicot Trial, described by its producers as a work of "documentary theatre", is scheduled to take place at County Hall on 30 November, with the Young Vic theatre staging the event.

Among those confirmed to appear are US comedian Rosie O'Donnell, Celebrity Traitors contestant Julie Hesmondhalgh, Bridgerton star Adjoa Andoh and former EastEnders actress Tamzin Outhwaite. The breadth of the cast reflects the unusual nature of the project, which seeks to translate the weight of a sprawling criminal case into a live dramatic experience rather than a conventional scripted play.

The production has been assembled from court documents and psychiatric assessments relating to dozens of men who were prosecuted in the case. Rather than inventing dialogue, the creators have drawn directly on testimony and written accounts generated during the proceedings, a technique intended to give audiences a sense of the trial as it unfolded rather than a dramatised interpretation of it.

The case itself centres on Dominique Pelicot, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison for drugging and raping his then wife and for recruiting fifty other men to rape her while she was unconscious. The revelations shocked France and prompted widespread international condemnation, while Gisele Pelicot's decision to speak publicly turned her into a globally recognised figure associated with courage in the face of sexual violence.

Additional cast members announced for the London staging include Juliet Stevenson, known for films such as Truly, Madly, Deeply, and Samuel West, familiar to television audiences from All Creatures Great and Small. Oliva Wiliams, who appeared in The Sixth Sense, and Kadiff Kirwan of Slow Horses will also take part, alongside comedian Rosie Jones, Dune actress Sharon Duncan-Brewster, Bridgerton's Lorraine Ashbourne and Rizzle Kicks rapper Jordan Stephens.

Organisers have indicated that further casting will be revealed in the weeks leading up to the performance. The scale of the ensemble — spanning film, television, comedy and music — appears designed to match the scope of a trial that involved multiple defendants and a vast body of evidence, and to underline that the subject matter reaches well beyond any single profession or audience.

The Young Vic said the performance is a "profoundly affecting piece of documentary theatre" built from testimonies and written accounts, and that it pays tribute to "the ordinary woman who opened the way to change". That framing positions the production not simply as a retelling of courtroom events but as an act of recognition for Gisele Pelicot's decision to waive her right to anonymity.

Gisele Pelicot, who is 73, gave up the anonymity normally afforded to survivors of sexual abuse and has said that shame should be attached to her abusers rather than to her. That stance became a defining element of the public response to the case, prompting demonstrations of support in France and shaping debates about how victims of sexual violence are treated by legal systems and by the media.

The play is not entirely new. It received its world premiere in Vienna last year and has since travelled to a series of cities, including Avignon, New York, Lisbon, Milan and Bergen. The London performance therefore represents the latest stop on an international tour that has already tested the material in several different cultural and legal contexts.

The four-hour running time reflects the sheer volume of material involved. The production was developed in collaboration with journalists and feminist organisations in France, a detail that suggests the creators were concerned with accuracy and with the broader social questions raised by the trial rather than with purely theatrical effect.

London's County Hall, the venue chosen for the performance, provides a setting with its own institutional associations, though the production will not be staged in a traditional theatre. The decision to stream the event online also indicates an intention to reach audiences far beyond those able to secure seats in the room, extending the play's reach to viewers in other countries.

Tickets for the London performance are due to go on general sale on Wednesday, following the pattern of previous tour dates where demand has been driven by interest in both the subject matter and the unusual format. The combination of a single performance and a large, recognisable cast is likely to make seats scarce.

The production arrives amid continuing public discussion about the treatment of sexual violence, consent and the conduct of high-profile trials. By presenting courtroom material directly to audiences, the creators are effectively inviting theatregoers to confront the mechanics of a case that has already reshaped conversations in France and elsewhere, and to consider how testimony is recorded, reported and remembered.

For the performers involved, the project represents an unusual departure from conventional stage and screen work, requiring them to deliver material rooted in real proceedings rather than fictional characters. For audiences, the appeal lies partly in witnessing a collective response to a case that has become a reference point in debates about accountability and the courage of survivors.