The Great Gatwa has a BBC Audio Drama Award nomination for his role in Gatsby in Harlem
Fifteenth Doctor Ncuti Gatwa may not have signed up for more Doctor Who at Big Finish yet but he’s already an award winning audio actor. He’s already won Best Performance at the British Audio Awards for his starring role in Gatsby in Harlem. His performance as Jay Gatsby has now earned him a nomination for Best Actor at the BBC Audio Drama Awards.
The two part BBC Radio 3 audio drama transports the classic novel to the world of the Harlem Renaissance. Young Nick Carraway is a new arrival in New York, straight from the Jim Crow era American South. After renting a squalid ground floor apartment, he quickly becomes fascinated by his glamourous neighbour. The charismatic millionaire Jay Gatsby owns the luxurious Brownstone next door. He also plays host to the wildest parties in town, fueled by the power of jazz. Meanwhile, Nick reunites with his cousin Daisy and meets her domineering husband, uptight businessman Tom Buchanan. Before long, all four become wrapped up in an emotional drama of privilege and class.
Ncuti Gatwa plays Gatsby, while the beautiful but volatile Daisy Buchanan is fellow Whoniverse alumna Gugu Mbatha-Raw, who was both Tish Jones in Doctor Who and Salt in The War Between the Land and the Sea.
Gatsby in Harlem itself has a BBC Audio Drama Awards nomination for Best Adaptation. In the Best Actor category, Gatwa is up against yet another Doctor Who veteran – Sir Derek Jacobi, who was the Master in 2007’s Utopia. His nomination comes for his role as Sir Laurence Olivier in When Maggie Met Larry. The audio play tells the story of when the acting legend coached the future Prime Minister to create her distinct voice and public persona.
The winners will be announced in a ceremony on Sunday 1 March at the BBC’s Radio Theatre.
