Thom Yorke's Hamlet Hail To The Thief Shares London Rehearsal Photos Ahead of Barbican Premiere
Behind-the-scenes images by Manuel Harlan offer a first look at rehearsals for the Radiohead and RSC collaboration, which fuses Hail To The Thief with Shakespeare's Hamlet at the Barbican Theatre from October 31, 2026 to January 23, 2027.
Behind-the-scenes photographs from rehearsals for Hamlet Hail To The Thief, the collaboration between Thom Yorke and the Royal Shakespeare Company, have been released ahead of the production's London premiere at the Barbican Theatre. The images, shot by Manuel Harlan, offer a first look at the staging that will bring together Radiohead's 2003 album with a contemporary adaptation of William Shakespeare's Hamlet.
The show, which received its debut in Manchester last year, is directed by Tony and Olivier Award winners Steven Hoggett and Christine Jones. Yorke has personally reworked and orchestrated the music from Hail To The Thief for a cast of more than 20 musicians and actors, who will perform live during each performance. The project is described as a «feverish new live experience, fusing theatre, music and movement».
According to the production's synopsis, Elsinore has become a surveillance state and hectic runs in the blood of its citizens. Hamlet Hail To The Thief centres on Hamlet and Ophelia's awakening to the lies and corruption in Denmark, gradually revealed by ghosts and music. Paranoia reigns and no one is spared a tragic unravelling.
The London run at the Barbican Theatre is scheduled from October 31, 2026 to January 23, 2027. The release of the rehearsal photos comes as anticipation builds for the production's arrival in the capital, following its acclaimed Manchester debut.
Yorke has previously spoken about the unexpected connections between the album and Shakespeare's tragedy. Despite apparent synchronicities, he said: «Hamlet was not in our minds when we made the record.» He told The Observer last year that he did not subscribe to the synchronicity idea, comparing it to the notion that Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon aligns with The Wizard of Oz. «But, obviously, my initial reaction was, this is Hamlet, therefore it's sacrosanct, it's untouchable. You can't. But the idea didn't go away. It planted a little seed in my head,» he added.
Revisiting the album for the production also led Radiohead to release Hail to the Thief Live Recordings 2003-2009, a collection of performances recorded in London, Amsterdam, Buenos Aires and Dublin. Yorke said the process allowed the band members to «re-evaluate their relationship» with their sixth studio album. «In the process of thinking of how to build arrangements for the Shakespeare Hamlet/Hail To The Thief theatre production, I asked to hear some archive live recordings of the songs,» he explained. «I was shocked by the kind of energy behind the way we played. I barely recognised us, and it helped me find a way forward.» He described the experience as «very cathartic» and said the band decided to mix and release the recordings rather than keep them private.
The project arrives amid a renewed period of activity for Radiohead. Songs from Hail To The Thief featured heavily during the band's long-awaited 2025 comeback tour. Guitarist Ed O'Brien confirmed plans to continue touring in 2027 and beyond, outlining a strategy of performing on a different continent each year with a fixed number of shows. Radiohead have since announced 21 shows for next year, taking place in Perth, Melbourne and Sydney in Australia, followed by a run in Saitama, Japan.
O'Brien also told NME this spring that the band had «not even talked about another record» yet, and reflected on the «amazing» tour. «The songs can kind of play themselves in a way, but if there's the love and that feeling between the five of us, and there was, and it was glorious,» he said.
Tickets for Hamlet Hail To The Thief at the Barbican Theatre are available, with the production set to run for nearly three months in London.
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