Andrew Scott's Elsinore wins Audience Award at Toronto Film Festival

Elsinore, starring Dubliner Andrew Scott, won the International People's Choice Award at Toronto International Film Festival on Sunday. Scott plays Scottish actor Ian Charleson as he prepares to play Hamlet at the National Theatre in London while living with AIDS.

Charleson was known for his starring role in the 1981 film Chariots of Fire as well as his role in the Oscar-winning 1982 film Gandhi. He was diagnosed with HIV in 1986, and died four years later, aged 40.

His was the first celebrity death officially attributed to AIDS in the UK, as was his wish, to spread awareness and decrease stigma around the disease. The Ian Charleson Awards were established the following year, awarded for classical stage performances, in honour of Charleson's final role as Hamlet.

Andrew Scott has also acted in Fleabag and 1917 as well as in the recently released film Pressure. He has won a BAFTA TV Award, two Laurence Olivier Awards, and has been nominated for several Emmys and Golden Globes. Fittingly, one of his Laurence Olivier Awards was for his 2018 performance as Hamlet.

Elsinore was directed by Simon Stone. The script was written by Stephen Beresford, known for writing Pride, which Scott also acted in.

The film premiered at Telluride Film Festival earlier this month. It will be shown in Irish and UK cinemas from January 29, 2027.