Stay in the know.
Sign up for updates about events, news and special offers.
Vespertilio
LGBT

Vespertilio

A heartwarming tale of love, loneliness and bats.

Thanks to the generous support of our audiences and the UK Government’s Cultural Recovery Fund, we’re able to guarantee that over 50% of the value of your ticket for any Plays On Film production will go directly to the artists and companies involved at this difficult time for freelancers across the entertainment industry.

“So there’s a theory that we all have a finite number of heartbeats. We all have a billion heartbeats to live. Humans, cats, dogs, rats - all our hearts beat at different speeds but we all have the same amount. A clock with a billion ticks"

Flight and Hope present the critically acclaimed Vespertilio, filmed in high definition by the award-winning Shoot Media as part of the King’s Head Theatre’s digital on demand season, Plays on Film.

Written by Barry McStay (Our Island) and directed by Lucy Jane Atkinson (A Hundred Words for Snow), this atmospheric tale of loneliness and unlikely connection was a sell-out hit at London’s VAULT Festival and winner of the festival’s ‘Show of the Week’. 

Inspired by the incredible true story of the last Greater Mouse-Eared bat living in Britain, Vespertilio explores the tender romance between Alan, a bat enthusiast, and Josh, the charming young runaway he meets in the dark. 

Available to watch on demand via our new streaming service, KHTV, from Thursday 15 April 2021.

WATCH TRAILER

ABOUT PLAYS ON FILM

ABOUT KHTV

CAST & CREATIVES

Cast

Josh - Joshua Oakes-Rogers

Alan - Benedict Salter 

Additional Voices

Radio Announcer - Victoria Cook

Patricia Bramwell - Rhiannon Neads

Bob Langley - Toby Manley

George Topping - Mikey Brett

 

Creatives

Writer Barry McStay

Director Lucy Jane Atkinson

Set Designer Verity Johnson

Lighting Designer Zia Bergin-Holly

Sound Designer Annie May Fletcher

Producer Jess Duxbury

2019 Artwork Madison Coby

 

Ticket Price

£10 - £18

WHEN

Booking a ticket will allow you to stream the show on demand from 15 April - 05 May

WHERE

Online

SHARE THIS:

REVIEWS

★★★★★ "A touching air of woe imbued with the hope of joy...a triumph" Broadway Baby

“This is such a pleasure...a play about home, belonging and the way that loneliness creeps up upon you so you hardly notice that it has become your shroud. Until another human being touches you” Lyn Gardner, Stage Door

“The show is that gorgeous nugget of rarity: a fully fashioned, ready-to-go play – a delicious one-hour mouthful of drama...it’s mesmerising, kind of dark, unexpected, sardonic and ever so slightly camp” Exeunt Magazine

★★★★ 1/2 “Very funny with lots of intergenerational confusion about Harry Potter and jokes about Batman…the partnership between the men is so engaging that we want to see how it progresses into the future" Reviews Hub

★★★★ "This gentle play about lonely souls reaching out across a dark divide feels particularly poignant after a long year of lockdowns...a pleasure" London Pub Theatres

★★★★ "A moving and passionate story about two men who find themselves alone, not quite fitting into the world...unique" Mobile Theatre

"Delightfully done" 2nd from Bottom


YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE...

Drama + Main House

How to Survive Your Mother

The true story of a Technicolor woman in a black and white world

Pantomime + Main House

Cinderella

Starring Drag Race UK's Ella Vaday, and featuring the voices of Dame Judi Dench and Miriam Margolyes!

Pantomime + Main House

Cinderella - Adults Only

SHH! Islington's new family pantomime has gone after-hours...

Drama + Main House Later

Queen Bette

The Ultimate Hollywood icon brought back to life. UK Premiere.

Cabaret + Cabaret House

Sexy Rude Harp Concert

A show about life, love, and the dangers of always being yourself

Dark Comedy + Main House + Spring 2025

(This Is Not A) Happy Room

You can’t choose your family, but if you could, you wouldn’t choose this one