Outlander star and Royal Conservatoire alumni Sam Heughan will star in a production of Macbeth.

The 45-year-old Outlander star will appear in the Royal Shakespeare Company production of Macbeth as part of the British theatre company’s programme of events for 2025/2026. Heughan attended the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland before going on to appear in the hit Starz show Outlander as Jamie Fraser.

He said: “At age 18, standing on the main stage of the Royal Lyceum Edinburgh, playing ‘spear-carrier number two’ (essentially a glorified extra) in a production of Macbeth, I could only dream of one day playing the infamous title character.

“It feels full circle to be returning to the stage, after over a decade working primarily in television and film. Not only is Macbeth my favourite Shakespeare play: intense, immediate and unsettling, it also happens to be famously Scottish.

“The RSC has always been at the pinnacle of my ambition and I feel deeply honoured and thankful to be working alongside some enormously talented and creative people.”

The play will be performed in the RSC’s The Other Place theatre in Stratford Upon Avon, where he will star alongside Tony award-nominated actress Lia Williams of The Crown.

He added: “The Other Place is the perfect space to create an intense, intimate production and, like Lady M, we will be calling upon the spirits of the RSC’s highly acclaimed past productions for their blessing.”

Heughan was born in Dumfries and Galloway before moving to Edinburgh aged 12. He graduated from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (RSAMD, now the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland) in Glasgow in 2003.

The production will be the first of Macbeth to premiere in The Other Place since the landmark 1976 performance of the play starring Ian McKellen and Judi Dench, directed by former RSC Artistic Director, Trevor Nunn. It was later broadcast for Thames Television in 1979.

The Royal Shakespeare Company’s 2025/2026 programme will also see Scottish actor David Tennant appear - with Sir Ian McKellen, and Ralph Fiennes also appearing.