LILY ALLEN

STAGE DEBUT GIVES A REASON TO SMILE

Photographed leaving London’s Noël Coward Theatre and heading to her opening night party at J Sheekey, Lily Allen looked in high spirits – and for good reason.

In her first major acting role, the singer had just won over the critics in creepy new play 2:22 A Ghost Story, directed by Matthew Dunster (below centre) in which she stars alongside (below, left to right) Hadley Fraser, Julia Chan and former EastEnders actor Jake Wood.

Ahead of her stage debut, Lily told the BBC she was “riding a wave of excitement and terror” – and it wasn’t just the script that was giving her chills. “The whole thing is massively overwhelming,” she explained. “Everyone’s been so supportive, because I’m the village idiot. I don’t know what I’m doing.”

Among those supporting her was her husband, actor David Harbour. The Stranger Things star – currently in the US for work – sent Lily “bad luck flowers” with a tongue-in-cheek note on opening night. Posting on Instagram, he later told followers: “Very proud of my slightly nervous, immensely brave, annoyingly talented wife.”