On February 17, 1995, Rik and Stephen Fry opened at the Albery Theatre in London in Simon Gray's Cell Mates. Apparently Stephen felt he was not doing justice to his role as KGB agent George Blake and felt disappointed in his own performance. It didn't help matters that both the play and Stephen got so-so reviews.

This situation set off a nervous breakdown, with Stephen disappearing six days after the play opened. Obviously this caused much worry amongst those around him....until he was spotted in Belgium looking quite healthy. However, Stephen says he was suicidal and despondent at the time. The play may have set off the breakdow, but it was mainly caused by numerous other issues in Stephen's life which had been brewing under the surface for a while.

Stephen wasn't the only unhappy person around. Without his star power, the play was not drawing in the crowds it should have. Rik was reported to be terribly affected by Stephen's departure as well. While Stephen's replacement Simon Ward was said to be good in the role, Rik felt he had a special rapport with Stephen.

The play closed on March 25, 1995 after much financial trouble. Simon Gray was so angry that he wrote a book about the experience titled Fat Chance. In the book, Stephen comes off as bit of a "villain" while Rik comes off quite saintly. However, if you can see through the emotional bias, you'll come away with some interesting impressions of Rik's personal life. The book is now out of print but can usually be found easily and cheaply through used book sites (see the Where to Buy Rik Items page). Since these events Rik and Stephen are said to be friends again. The same can't really be said of Simon and Stephen.

For some information on just what was going through Stephen's head at the time, see Disappearing Fry Blames "Stage Fright" and "Forgive Me, I'm a Silly Old Fool", Says Fry.