Brosnan Jnr to take to the stage, does not rule out Bond ambition

Sean B Brosnan - son of Pierce - doesn't sound like a future James Bond. He may have attended an English boarding school from the age of 14, but after spending his formative years in LA his accent is as American as they come. Nevertheless, he still has ambitions to play the role that made his father famous - reports The Scotsman.

"I think any young man would love to play the part of James Bond," he says. "I mean, fast cars, gadgets, sexy women..." But can he do a decent British accent? Yes, he says, without a moment's hesitation. Would he care to demonstrate? "Ah - I think I'll save it," he says. "I'm doing one in Romeo and Juliet, so you'll get a chance to hear it then."

That production will be at Edinburgh's Ross Open Air Theatre later this month, as part of the capital's first ever Shakespeare Festival. It isn't going to be a large festival by Edinburgh standards, consisting of only two shows - Romeo and Juliet and A Midsummer Night's Dream - both performed by the London-based British Shakespeare Company. Still, given the success of Glasgow's annual Bard in the Botanics season, which has proved a huge hit since it began in 2002, perhaps an Edinburgh equivalent is overdue.

Brosnan will play Romeo, his first professional theatre role since graduating from the Central School of Speech and Drama in London last year. Liana Weafer, who has previously acted at the Globe, will play Juliet, and Mina Anwar - best known as Constable Habib from Richard Curtis's sitcom, The Thin Blue Line - will play the Nurse.

The part of Mercutio will be taken by Robert J Williamson - the British Shakespeare Company's multi-tasking manager-producer-director-actor.

Has Brosnan found it odd being directed by someone he's also acting alongside in several scenes? "It's the first time for me, but it's quite interesting," he says. "It's funny, because sometimes when we're on stage together I think he's going to stop me during a scene and go, 'Actually, could you just move downstage left a bit?' He's a good guy - he's got a lot on his plate and he's handling it very well."

Brosnan is Pierce Brosnan's son by his first wife Cassandra Harris, who died in 1991. He started acting at an early age - in 1997 he played the cabin boy in Rod Hardy and George Miller's big-screen version of Robinson Crusoe, in which his father played the title role. In 2004 he was Brosnan Senior's body-double in the romantic comedy Laws of Attraction, which also starred Julianne Moore.

Since graduating, the 22-year-old has been involved in a variety of short film projects, including one called My Horizons with his friend Brawley Nolte and Brawley's famous father Nick. "That one's basically about a father and his two sons and how the father and one son cope with the death of another son," he explains. "I'm playing Brawley's older brother - I die - and the film's basically about how they handle the situation."

There are also rumours that Brosnan is working on a new Mel Gibson film. "That's kind of a rumour really," he says, "I can't really say anything about that at the moment." Might it be something he will be involved with in the future? "Possibly, yes."

What is it called? "It's called Connected." And what's it about? "It's basically science fiction... It's kind of, er... Argh! You see? You're getting it out of me now! It's about the Nephilim - half-angels half-humans - which are actually in the Bible. Fallen angels come and fornicate with human women and they have offspring which are half-angel, half-human, and in the film they're still walking the world today."

Brosnan has visited Scotland before. Last September he and his friend Sam Branson (yup, son of Richard) flew to Glasgow to take part in a fashion show in aid of the children's charity NCH Scotland. Just before their jaunt, Brosnan told a newspaper: "I hope to find out more about the Scots ladies on this trip."

He has evidently become a little more wary of the media since then. Asked if his research in Glasgow was successful, he replies: "Well, it was quite nice being able to walk down a catwalk with two beautiful women on either arm... So yes [in a fake posh English accent] I think all in all it went rather swimmingly well."

For all his reserve, however, Brosnan does let on that he's single at the moment. Wannabe Bond girls: tickets for Romeo and Juliet are on sale now.

• Romeo and Juliet is at Ross Open Air Theatre, Edinburgh (0131-228 1155), from 27 June; A Midsummer Night's Dream opens on 28 June

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