Mind you, then again, bad example since I think that Law's acting is pretty uniformly dire (Gattaca, Mr Ripley, Huckabees being three rare exceptions).

What I'm trying to say - badly - is that I want my stages filled with actors. If they also happen to be celebrities, so be it. I'd prefer the proportion of quality actors to be as high as possible, but if there needs to be some so-called 'stunt' casting in order to guarantee enough seat sales for a play to happen then so be that as well...

And I agree that Miller's rant seems especially ill-placed given Tennant's reputation as an actor on stage, particularly before the damn thing even opens.

I think the slight difference with theatre is, the famous ones are famous because they do usually have talent and have proved it on screen (or in DT's case on stage prior to his screen success). Without a doubt I want to go and see DT's Hamlet because of Dr Who, but I'm not so bothered about seeing Jude Law's, and given the opportunity would go and see a group of unknowns. I think Miller is slightly missing the point. It's a crowded market place, the theatre. Was it wise to consider putting on Hamlet in the West End when you already know Messrs Tennant and Law are playing that role there? Why not try something else.

I was disappointed not to get tickets for A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Globe - and I didn't know anyone acting in it. People who love theatre will come regardless. But people who are a little less comfortable with it will be more tempted if they see David Tennant's name in lights, just as they'll stray into a bookshop to by Russell Brand's Booky Wook. Tis the way the world works, and not to have a commercial view would mean no plays in the West End and no books.

I do draw the line at Katie Price being up for a prize for children's book she hasn't written though...

It's a bit odd and whingey of Jonathan Miller, to be honest. I mean, we aren't talking about Chicago-style celebrity casting here: David Tennant and Patrick Stewart are famous because of their acting. Where would Miller like to draw the line? Is it OK if you've been in a TV series in a background role, but not if you were the main character? Is it not OK if you got viewing figures above 5million?

And anyway, when has it been any different? When did West End plays not cast well-known actors in starring roles to attract audiences? Were Laurence Olivier, Ralph Richardson, Trevor Howard and Peggy Ashcroft 'celebrity casting' in the 1950s, when they'd all been in successful Hollywood films?

Conversely, the last big production Hamlet I can remember was an Old Vic one, directed by Trevor Nunn, and starring Ben Whishaw (sp?), who nobody had heard of at the time.

Oh, wait...

Quite why anybody's surprised that West End producers take commercial decisions is beyond me, though. That's the nature of the market. Personally, I'd be happier if big names such as Miller expended their energy extolling the virtues of theatre beyond the West End. There's so much brilliant stuff out there at all levels around the UK that it's a shame so much attention gets diverted to a few streets in London...