In the two-hander, Bellingham (Sugar Mummies, Losing Louis) will play Anita opposite newcomer Mark Field as Davey, a schoolboy who Anita invites into her grubby East London apartment to find out why he has been following her.

First staged at North London's Hampstead Theatre in 2001, Vincent River is being touted as a departure for the actress, who made her name in cozy television sitcoms and comedy dramas.

Artist and playwright Philip Ridley is one of Britain's most shocking dramatists. His play Mercury Fur - a post-apocalyptic nightmare about the preparations for a party, the entertainment for which is the (offstage) torture of a kidnapped boy - divided critical opinion and caused walkouts when it premiered at the Menier Chocolate Factory.

His latest play, Leaves of Glass, premiered earlier this year at the Soho Theatre and, like Mercury Fur, starred Ben Whishaw in the leading role.

Vincent River is directed by Rebecca McCutcheon (The Round Dance), and the production will be accompanied with a photographic exhibition of Ridley's East London photographs. For more on Vincent River, call (0)870 060 6632.