WE'VE seen Jason Donovan as the Neighbours soap heartthrob, Eighties' pin-up popstar, reality TV contestant and celebrity talent show competitor. Jason, the Technicolor-coated Joseph; Jason, the transvestite Frank'n'Furter in The Rocky Horror Show; Jason, the drag act Mitzi Del Bra in Priscilla, Queen Of The Desert. Jason, the principled, loving father Georg Von Trapp in The Sound Of Music; Jason, the murdering Sweeney Todd.

In other words, there is more to Donovan than the stereotype image, and here is a tenth good reason to enjoy that diversity: his character-actor role as failed actor turned maverick Australian speech therapist Lionel Logue, a performance so charming, intriguing and assured, it might leave you lost for words.

Chances are you will know The King's Speech from the 2011 Oscar-winning film, but David Seidler's West End play came first. It re-emerges in this 2015 Chichester Festival Theatre and Birmingham Rep revival as an even better piece on stage, where it is at once intimate and yet grand in its scale to match the story of Bertie, the stammering Royal (Raymond Coulthard), seeking the help of the eccentric Logue.

This is thanks in no small part to the design of Tom Piper, best known for last year's ceramic field of poppies at the Tower of London. His wood-panelled crescent with doors and a sweeping central curtain has the grandeur of state yet switches with the swish of a brisk footman to being Logue's Harley Street office and home.

Roxana Silbert's direction is impeccable; the performances of Donovan's unguarded Logue and Coulthard's guarded, awkward Bertie are delightfully nuanced; and the supporting contributions of Claire Lams's Queen Elizabeth and Martin Turner's vainglorious Archbishop Cosmo Lang are particularly enjoyable.

The King's Speech, Leeds Grand Theatre, today at 7.30pm; tomorrow, 2.30pm and 7.30pm. Box office: 0844 848 2700 or leedsgrandtheatre.com