LONDON (AP) Actor Ian McKellen said Monday he is withdrawing from a U.K. tour of his latest play because he needs more time to recover after falling off the stage at a London theater last month.

McKellen, 85, said his injuries improve day by day.

Its with the greatest reluctance that I have accepted the medical advice to protect my full recovery by not working in the meantime, he said in a statement.

The Lord of the Rings star spent three nights in a London hospital after tumbling from the stage during a performance of Player Kings at the Noel Coward Theatre on June 17.