The first image of Michael Sheen in the role of Owain Glyndŵr has been released ahead of a stage production that centers on the last native Prince of Wales. The production, titled Owain & Henry, is slated to premiere in November 2026 at the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff, with Sheen portraying the medieval Welsh leader who led a 15-year revolt against English rule.
The 56-year-old actor, a Newport native, has described Glyndŵr as an iconic Welsh prince and is bringing him to life in a production described by its backers as a “stonking epic.” The project is presented by Wales’ national theatre company and is positioned as a key national story about Welsh nationhood. In announcing the casting, Sheen has also been vocal about his view that the title Prince of Wales should not be held by someone who is not Welsh, a stance he has reiterated in public comments over the years. The performance seeks to reframe Glyndŵr’s legacy, which he and playwright Gary Owen say has too often been coloured by unfavourable Shakespearean depictions.
Owain Glyndŵr’s life sits at the crossroads of legend and history. Born around 1354 at Sycharth Castle in Powys, Glyndŵr was of aristocratic stock and claimed descent from Llywelyn the Last and kinship with Powys and Cyfeiliog princes. Amid growing tension between Wales and the English Crown, he mobilized in Ruthin on September 16, 1400, leading a force that attacked towns in the northeast and drew Welsh scholars and workers back to their homeland. The revolt drew a broad cross-section of Welsh leaders and soldiers from the ranks of those who had fought for the English crown in Europe.
Henry IV answered with a full-scale campaign to crush the uprising, enacting anti-Welsh laws and reinforcing military control over the kingdom. By 1403 Glyndŵr had gained control of large portions of Wales and established a Parliament at Machynlleth in 1404, where he was proclaimed king of a free Wales. Yet the tide turned after 1408 as the English captured strategic forts such as Aberystwyth and Harlech, and Glyndŵr’s supporters were isolated. His family was taken hostage and he was declared an outlaw. He disappeared from the record after 1412 and is believed to have died around 1416, though the exact details remain unclear. Glyndŵr’s resistance has long stood as a symbol of Welsh nationalism and cultural identity, feeding into varied legends that have influenced literature and popular culture for centuries.
The new production, led by the national Welsh theatre company, aims to tell Glyndŵr’s story with a contemporary lens. Sheen has said the play will be one of the origin stories of the Welsh nation and emphasized that it remains relevant amid today’s political and social complexities. In speaking with BBC News, he described the work as telling “the exact story that I want this national theatre company to be able to tell, on the second biggest stage in Europe.” He added that Glyndŵr’s rebellion was not only about freeing a nation but about creating a nation.
Glyndŵr’s story has long fed into popular imagination beyond Wales. He is often cited as an inspiration behind George R. R. Martin’s Game of Thrones series, with online commentary linking the prophecy of “the prince that is promised” to Glyndŵr’s mythic stand. Fidel Castro has also been linked to Glyndŵr in discussions about anti-colonial guerrilla tactics, with Castro referring to Glyndŵr as “the world’s first guerrilla leader.” The new production thus sits at the intersection of history, myth and contemporary Welsh identity, seeking to reframe perceptions of Glyndŵr and Wales’ national story for modern audiences.
Meanwhile, Sheen’s public stance on the title Prince of Wales has continued to provoke discussion. In 2022 he used social media to critique the decision to present England shirts to the England team during the World Cup, arguing that the title should be held by a Welsh person. Critics in Wales have accused him of pressing a divisive issue; others welcome his willingness to engage with a complicated aspect of Welsh and British history. The Wales Millennium Centre production opens in 2026, with a run expected to attract attention from national audiences and international culture curators alike as it revisits one of Wales’ most enduring historical figures through contemporary theatre.