DAVID SUCHET - SUCHET PLAY SUFFERS FROM SMOKING BAN

SUCHET PLAY SUFFERS FROM SMOKING BAN

Poirot star DAVID SUCHET's upcoming London play THE LAST CONFESSION is in turmoil after a new anti-smoking ban has forced bosses to rewrite a critical scene. A smoking ban in enclosed public spaces comes into force in England on Sunday (01Jul07) and theatres are included under the ban. The Last Confession is set to open at the Theatre Royal Haymarket on Monday (02Jul07) and the theatre's management fear they could be prosecuted if they include the scene as is, in which Suchet's co-star Bernard Lloyd lights up. Theatre manager Mark Stradling says, "We can't afford to let the smoking scene go ahead for fear of prosecution. To me it all seems absolutely ridiculous. "Even in New York, theatres don't have a problem with it. You can't smoke anywhere in New York but it's allowed on Broadway on stage."