Ian McKellen is to play King Lear in his first major theatrical role since falling from the stage into the first row of the audience in 2024. The accident, which left him with “ agonising pains ”, happened during a performance of Player Kings in the West End and led McKellen to withdraw from the production. He will now return as Shakespeare’s Lear – a character he played to great acclaim in 2007 and 2017 – in the opening season of the redeveloped Yard theatre in east London, known for its DIY spirit and adventurous experimental work with emerging artists. It is a huge coup for the Yard, which has always punched above its weight since it was set up as a temporary theatre in a disused warehouse in Hackney Wick in 2011. Last month, it won an Olivier award for The Glass Menagerie, the swansong production in its original home before it was razed and rebuilt.…