STORYHOUSE THEATRE, CHESTER – UNTIL 17TH OCTOBER 2026
REVIEWED BY MIA BOWEN
5*****
Last night, I had the great pleasure of watching Blood Brothers on press night, and what a night it was! The theatre was packed, with row after row filled with students studying for their courses, alongside an audience who clearly knew exactly what they had come to see. This was my second time seeing Willy Russell’s iconic musical, and as I took my seat, I could hear people around me telling each other how many times they had seen it. Seventeen times was the record I heard! That says everything about just how loved Blood Brothers is here in the North West.
And it’s easy to understand why. People know the lines off by heart, yet the story still has the power to make an audience laugh, wince and ultimately break their hearts.
Set in 1960s Liverpool, Blood Brothers follows Mrs Johnstone, played brilliantly by Vivienne Carlyle, a mother struggling to raise her growing family. When circumstances lead her to make an extraordinary decision concerning one of her newborn sons, the twins grow up in very different worlds, unaware of the connection between them. Sean Jones’ Mickey and Joe Sleight’s Eddie grow up on opposite sides of the social divide, while Beth Danher’s Linda becomes an important part of their shared childhood and, later, their lives. Meanwhile, Tricia Adele Turner’s Mrs Lyons finds herself increasingly consumed by the consequences of the decision she has made. Michael Gillette’s Sammy brings another layer to Mickey’s journey as the brothers grow older.
What follows is a powerful exploration of nature versus nurture, social class, friendship, love, jealousy and fate. It’s a story that gradually tightens its emotional grip, showing how two children raised in completely different circumstances can still be connected by an unbreakable bond.
Sean Jones, Beth Danher and Tricia Adele Turner were particular standouts for me. Sean Jones and Joe Sleight portraying Mickey and Eddie at seven years old, nearly eight, were fantastic — capturing the innocence, mischief and unmistakable bond of childhood beautifully.
And then there is the music. It doesn’t simply accompany the story; it tells it. Marilyn Monroe, Easy Terms and Tell Me It’s Not True had me reaching for the tissues. The music carries so much of the emotion, making the story’s quieter moments just as powerful as its biggest scenes.
The set deserves a special mention too, creating a wonderful backdrop to this very Liverpool story, with the Liver Building proudly standing in the background.
And that ending… Even when you’ve seen Blood Brothers before, and you know that gunshot is coming, somehow, it still catches you out. You find yourself holding your breath, hoping that perhaps this time it will be different — even though you know it won’t.
As the Narrator delivered that final line, some of the audience were already on their feet, applauding, and a standing ovation quickly followed. As people began making their way out, I could hear members of the audience crying. That, to me, says everything.
Funny, powerful, beautifully performed and utterly heartbreaking, Blood Brothers remains a true North West favourite for very good reason. A timeless piece of musical theatre that still packs one hell of an emotional punch.
Sheffield Lyceum – until Saturday 17th October 2026
Reviewed by Claire Moore
4****
Waitress arrives in Sheffield with West End star Lucie Jones returning to the role of Jenna, alongside Les Dennis as Old Joe.
Set in a small American town, the musical tells the story of Jenna, a talented pie-maker working in a local diner who dreams of a happier life. Stuck in an unhappy marriage, she finds comfort in baking and the friendship of her fellow waitresses, Becky (Bernadette Bangura) and Dawn (Evie Hoskins). But when an unexpected pregnancy and a handsome new doctor (Dan Partridge) turn her world upside down, Jenna is forced to think about what she really wants from life.
Based on the 2007 film written and directed by Adrienne Shelly, Waitress features music and lyrics by Grammy Award-winning Sara Bareilles and a book by Jessie Nelson. It combines humour, friendship and romance with some much more serious themes, exploring what it takes to find the courage to change your life.
Jenna puts on a brave face each day, telling the world she’s ‘happy enough’, but her daydreams tell a different story. With a change in lighting, and soft music the real world fades and we’re taken into Jenna’s imagination as she dreams up new pie recipes. It’s a lovely way of showing us what’s going on in her head and giving her a brief escape from the reality of her life.
Although the show deals with some tough real-life situations, there’s plenty of humour to lighten the mood. In particular, the developing relationship between Dawn and Ogie (Mark Anderson), who are both a little awkward but soon discover just how much they have in common. Including a shared love of American Revolution reenactments — trust me, it’s much funnier than it sounds!
Lucie Jones is fabulous as Jenna. Her voice is outstanding, but it’s also the way she portrays Jenna’s emotions that makes her performance so believable. You really find yourself rooting for her. The friendship between Jenna, Dawn and Becky is another highlight, with the three women supporting each other through whatever life throws at them. There’s a lovely message about female friendship and the importance of having people in your corner.
The choreography is very cleverly done, particularly the way props are passed between characters as scenes unfold. Plates, ingredients, bowls move seamlessly from one person to another, turning even the simplest movements into part of the performance. It keeps everything flowing and adds a real sense of energy to the diner scenes.
It was also great to see the live band on stage. With the limited space at Sheffield’s Lyceum, this can’t have been easy to achieve, but having the piano as part of the diner and musicians joining the action works really well.
The set moves smoothly between the diner, the doctor’s surgery and Jenna’s home. The contrast between the bright, colourful diner and the bleakness of her home is particularly effective, showing just how much happier Jenna is at work baking pies than she is in her own house.
But will life improve for Jenna? No spoilers for those who haven’t seen it, but it’s fair to say you’ll leave the theatre feeling a little more joyful, perhaps a little more grateful for the friends and family in your life — and probably wanting some pie.
Nottingham Theatre Royal – until Saturday 17th October 2026
Reviewed by Louise Ford
5*****
Lots of things are mysteries.
Last night’s production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time was a Gentle Performance. This meant that the lights would be turned down but not turned off, and any frightening or worrying scenes would be signposted by a low rumbling sound. This announcement was made by Chris’s teacher, Siobhan (Bridgette Amofah), it seemed to resonate with the audience who were predominantly young. The book is a GCSE set text, which is studied as a stage play, adapted by Simon Stephens. It was lovely to go to a production with a young and lively audience. There was a real buzz and energy in the theatre. They were all so engaged with the production.
The original book by Mark Haddon was published in 2003 and at the time was groundbreaking in that the story is told from the perspective of Chris Boone, a 15 year old who is neurodivergent. It takes its title from a line in Sherlock Holmes’s The Adventure of Silver Blaze. The master detective is one of Chris’s heroes. The book was adapted in 2013 for the stage to international acclaim, winning several Olivier Awards and a Tony when it transferred to Broadway. The current adaptation is by Simon Stephens and is directed by Ned Bennett for Birmingham Rep.
The story is, on one level, a murder mystery (just who did kill the eponymous dog?) with Chris as the detective aiming to solve the mystery. On another level, it is a study of a family in crisis and, finally, and perhaps its USP, it is told from the perspective of a neurodivergent adolescent who is struggling to make sense of the world.
In this production, the role of Chris has been rejigged so that Chris is a teenage girl. The part was played by Alex Keenan (alternating with Imi Price), both of whom are neurodivergent. In last night’s performance, it was Alex who was on the stage for the whole evening. She was amazing. She was able to draw us into her world and show us how absurd and confusing the “normal“ world is. From not only how adults behave, to the language that we use, to the overwhelming signage and noise, once we leave our home.
The sense of chaos and confusion is contrasted with the order and safety of home. However, even everyday objects, when projected onto the screen, make them seem threatening and strange. The video backdrop is by Hayley Egen. The largely bare staging is by Eleanor Bull. At times, the stage is crowded with people and props and at others, it is a simple row of cartoon houses. The scenes in the underground are particularly effective. The chaos and confusion are further enhanced, and add a surreal element, by bouncing yellow balls and tumblers doing cartwheels.
Siobhan is Chris’s trusted adult and helps her (and us) to navigate the world. Siobhan appears to have endless patience and understanding. Whereas Chris’s parents (played by Joe McFadden (Ed) and Charlie Brooks (Judy)) have their own issues to navigate. Family life is messy and chaotic. The parents make mistakes, and their actions show that they cannot always deal with their own lives. Chris’s lawn-mowing neighbour is Mrs Alexander (Alex Murdoch), she is kind and provides valuable details about the neighbourhood.
The production is a refreshing look at a much-loved story. It uses a lot of different theatrical devices (lighting, sound, visual) to highlight the chaos of modern life through a neurodivergent lens. From the start, we are invested in Chris and her courage to travel through an unpredictable world and to solve the mystery. We are also delighted that she succeeds with her exams, and whilst she may not become an astronaut, she’ll certainly have a brilliant career as a scientist.
Of all Jane Austen’s messages, themes and persuasions, the importance of eating your greens, or your bum falling off, is certainly one of the more memorable takeaways. I’m not sure it made it into the original novel, but thanks to Director Isobel McArthur, it’s certainly going to stay with me.
If you want to sit in front of a stage wondering just how many levels of crazy a production can reach, then Pride & Prejudice* (*Sort Of) is the show for you. Beautifully bonkers, gloriously irreverent and utterly hilarious, this is Austen with the volume turned up to eleven.
Five female actors own every inch of the stage with all the grace of a bull in a China shop, and I mean that as the highest possible compliment. The uncouth language is gloriously filthy, outrageously funny and utterly on point and a delivered like a Northern Express train pulling into Downton Abbey. Nothing is sacred, everything is fair game, and the comedy comes thick and fast.
The acting is superb, and the vocals are outstanding. The singing is delivered with such confidence, power and comic precision that it becomes one of the production’s many unexpected delights. Watching five women transform themselves into an entire cast of characters, with costume changes that deserve a standing ovation of their own, is a sight to behold. Particular praise must go to Julia Murray, whose performance as both Mr Darcy and Mrs Bennet is nothing short of exceptional. The versatility required to bring two such wildly different characters to life, often within moments of each other, is extraordinary. She delivers Darcy with all the brooding intensity audiences hope for, while her Mrs Bennet is a masterclass in comic chaos. If Mrs Hannigan is not already on her list of character performances, then it absolutely should be.
The costumes are as colourful as Quality Street, the energy is relentless, and the seamless transformations are a credit to Costume supervisor Morag Pirrie and Wardrobe Master Rod Bicknell. The sheer pace and precision required to pull this off are extraordinary.
And then there is Mr Bennett. His presence behind the chesterfield is ironically beautiful. The only male character not played by a woman, he is rendered almost entirely irrelevant to the Bennett household: there is no actor at all, just a newspaper stuck to a chesterfield. Bravo to that chesterfield. It gives a performance of remarkable stillness, commitment and understated comic timing.
And this production has absolutely everything: humour, dancing, singing, shiny disco balls and, surprisingly, some genuinely heartfelt emotion. Amid all the glorious nonsense, lovers align, hearts are won and Darcy eventually gets his bride. Although, let’s be honest, Elizabeth would propose to him, because she is the girl boss!
If you arrive expecting a traditional Austen masterpiece, prepare for a surprise. But beneath the outrageous comedy, there are plenty of affectionate nods to the original.
And if you’ve never read the novel or watched the film, I can absolutely promise you that there were no birds sponsored by Vileda, no Pringles and certainly no Chris de Burgh in the original. At least, not in the editions I’ve read.
You may leave questioning everything you thought you knew about Jane Austen, your relationship with vegetables and whether you’ll ever look at a Quality Street tin in quite the same way again.
To quote Mrs Bennett, not only would Baby Jesus be turning in his grave, but I’ve no doubt Jane Austen herself might have had a little shuffle, too.
The Menier Chocolate Factory today announces that Neil Morrissey will join the previously announced Ria Jones and Sally Ann Triplett in the critically acclaimed production of Fourteen Again which ran at The Victoria Wood Theatre in Bowness-on-Windermere this spring. Jonathan O’Boyle’s production opens at the Menier on Wednesday 2 December, with previews from Saturday 21 November, and runs until Saturday 27 February 2027. Morrissey worked with Wood on the original West End run of Acorn Antiques: The Musical!.
The Victoria Wood Theatre, previously The Old Laundry Theatre, was renamed this year – the 10th anniversary of Wood’s death, by her close friends and collaborators, the husband-and-wife team, producer Charlotte Scott and designer Roger Glossop. To celebrate Wood’s life and work they commissioned Tom MacRae (Everybody’s Talking About Jamie) to work with her songbook to create a brand-new musical, the inaugural production in the newly renamed venue.
Wood originally opened the venue, was a Trustee, and performed there many times. She also directed her own show Talent – which was co-produced with the Menier; and in 2013, her television film Housewife 49 was adapted for the stage especially for the venue.
Fourteen Again begins at the local Slimming Club, where Peggy is reunited with Lou, her best friend from school who she hasn’t seen since they were teenagers. As kids, no two friends were ever funnier or more fun, but here, now, today they are shadows of their younger selves – and a story unfolds of looking back to the future, full of comedy, love and pain, with Victoria Wood’s amazing songs moving the musical fast forward.
Music and Lyrics by Victoria Wood Book and Additional Lyrics by Tom MacRae
Cast: Ria Jones, Neil Morrissey, and Sally Ann Triplett,with understudies Jayne Ashley, Matt Gillett
Director: Jonathan O’Boyle; Musical Supervisor, Arranger & Co-Orchestrator: Nigel Lilley;
Choreographer: Sammy Murray; Set Designer: Roger Glossop; Costume Designer: Caroline Hughes; Lighting Designer: Jason Taylor; Sound Designer: Sam Glossop; Video Designer: Leo Flint; Musical Director & Co-Orchestrator: Archie McMorran; Assistant Director & Choreographer: Matt Gillett; Associate Set Designer: Caroline Dalton; Associate Sound Designer: Harry Greatorex
21 November 2026 – 27 February 2027
Ria Jones returns to the Menier to play Lou – she previously appeared at the Menier in Habeas Corpus. Her other theatre credits include Sunset Boulevard (London Coliseum/Leicester Curve/ European tour), Gypsy (Royal Exchange Theatre), Guys and Dolls (Marigny Theatre, Paris), 42nd Street (Curve/Théâtre du Châtelet, Paris), Les Misérables (Palace Theatre/UK tour), Chess (Prince Edward Theatre), Cats (New London Theatre), Evita (Opera House, Manchester), Nine (Donmar), High Society (Shaftesbury Theatre/UK tour), Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (UK tour/Hammersmith Apollo), Anything Goes, The Witches of Eastwick, Acorn Antiques (UK tours), Into The Woods (Esplanade Theatre, Singapore), Romance Romance; Victor Victoria (Bridewell Theatre), Personals (New End Theatre), A Twist of Fate (Jubilee Theatre, Singapore), Honk! (Victoria Theatre, Singapore), Jerry’s Girls (St James’s Theatre/ Jermyn Street Theatre), Closer Than Ever (Landor Theatre) and A Little Night Music (Haymarket Theatre, Leicester). Her television credits include Eric and Ernie, Torchwood, The Angina Monologues and Life and Debt.
Neil Morrissey plays Duncan. His theatre credits include A Christmas Carol (Alexandra Palace); The Crown Jewels (Garrick Theatre); Acorn Antiques: The Musical! (Theatre Royal, Haymarket); Guys and Dolls (Piccadilly Theatre); Oliver!, Rain Man, A Passionate Woman (UK tours); Relative Values (Harold Pinter Theatre); Neville’s Island (Duke of York’s Theatre); Aladdin, Cinderella (Assembly Rooms, Derby). Television credits include Men Behaving Badly (as series regular Tony), Boon (as series regular Rocky), Striking Out (as series regular Vincent Pike, QC), The Good Karma Hospital (as series regular Greg McConnell), Waterloo Road (as series regular Eddie Lawson), The Long Call, The Syndicate, Penance, Line Of Duty, The Trial of Christine Keeler, Unforgotten, Striking Out, Grantchester, Me & Mrs Jones, Carrie and Barry, Murder in Mind and Paradise Heights; and for film, Up ‘n’ Under, The Bounty, Crucible of the Vampire and Clubbed.
Sally Ann Triplett returns to the Menier to play Peggy – she previously appeared at the Menier in Take Flight. Her other theatre credits include Top Hat (Chichester Festival Theatre/Royal Festival Hall), Cabaret (KitKat Club), The Witches (National Theatre), Oklahoma! (Wyndham’s Theatre), Cabaret (Lido 2, Paris), Billy Elliot (Leicester Curve), Taboo (London Palladium), Gypsy (Alexandra Palace), Piaf (Nottingham Playhouse/Leeds Playhouse), Anything Goes (National Theatre/Theatre Royal Drury Lane; WhatsOnStage Award), Guys and Dolls (Piccadilly Theatre), Chicago (Adelphi Theatre), Acorn Antiques (Theatre Royal Haymarket), Mamma Mia! (Prince of Wales Theatre), Cats (New London Theatre), Grease (Dominion Theatre), Jolson (Victoria Palace Theatre/Toronto), Follies (Shaftesbury Theatre), Chess (Prince Edward Theatre), A Damsel in Distress (Chichester Festival Theatre), My Judy Garland Life (Nottingham Playhouse; UK Theatre Award nomination), Next toNormal (Drama Centre, Singapore), Carrie (RSC/Broadway), Much Ado About Nothing (Liverpool Playhouse), Absent Friends (Watford Palace), Becoming Nancy (Alliance, Atlanta), The Last Ship (Broadway/ Chicago), Finding Neverland (Broadway), Sweeney Todd (Barrow Street, Off-Broadway), Cradle Will Rock (Classic Stage Company, Off-Broadway), and Must (Theatre at St. Clement’s, Off-Broadway). Her television credits include Whitstable Pearl, and Down to Earth.
Victoria Wood won more Television BAFTAs than anyone in BAFTA history. She won awards for her stand-up, her drama and her light entertainment programmes. As a stand-up she toured for more than twenty years, and held the record at the Royal Albert Hall for fifteen consecutive sold out shows. In 2005 she wrote Acorn Antiques: The Musical! which had a sell-out run at the Theatre Royal Haymarket starring Julie Walters and Celia Imrie. The subsequent tour in 2006 was directed by Wood. In the same year she wrote the television drama Housewife 49 based on the Mass Observation Diary of Nella Last, which won two BAFTAs and an International Emmy nomination for Wood as Best Actress. Her three-part documentary Victoria’s Empire was shown the following year. In 2011 she wrote and directed the musical That Day We Sang for the Manchester International festival, which was about the famous 1929 recording of Nymphs and Shepherds by the Manchester Children’s Choir. She played the part of Eric Morcambe’s mother in Eric and Ernie, a BBC2 film about the early days of the double act, written by Peter Bowker from an idea by Wood. She also wrote and directed a short film, The Giddy Kipper, for the Little Crackers season on Sky One. Also in 2011, she was honoured with the Women in Film and Television Lifetime Achievement Award, won the Outstanding Contribution to Comedy at the Chortle Awards, was the first woman to receive the top prize from the Writers’ Guild Awards. Also that year at the Comedy Awards, she received the Best Female Television Comic Award for her performance in The Angina Monologues. Her other acting credits include The Borrowers and Case History. In 2012 her drama Loving Miss Hatto was broadcast on BBC1 over Christmas, and she also filmed a two-part documentary about the British love of tea for the channel. In 2014, she adapted and directed That Day We Sang starring Michael Ball and Imelda Staunton for the BBC. She was awarded a CBE in 2008.
Tom MacRae’s theatre credits include Everybody’s Talking About Jamie (Book and Lyrics: Sheffield Theatres/Apollo Theatre/UK tour/Los Angeles – three wins at 2018 WhatsOnStage Awards including Best New Musical, winner of Jack Tinker Award for Most Promising Newcomer at 2017 Critics’ Circle Theatre Awards, winner of Best Musical Theatre Bookwriting at Writers’ Guild Awards 2019, five nominations at 2018 Laurence Olivier Awards including Best New Musical) and Crash of the Elysium (Punchdrunk at the MIF). His television work includes The New Librarians, The Librarians, Fungus the Bogeyman, Threesome, Doctor Who, Bonekickers, Lewis, Marple – At Bertram’s Hotel, Mayo, No Angels, Money Can Buy You Love, School’s Out, As If, U Get Me and Mile High; and for film, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie (BAFTA, BIFA, London Critics Circle nominations).
Jonathan O’Boyle directs. His theatre credits include Million Dollar Quartet (Barn Theatre/Arts Theatre Marble Arch), Barnum (Watermill Theatre/UK tour), Picture You Dead, Calendar Girls: The Musical, Hair, Rain Man, This House (UK tours), Lucie Jones: Live in Concert (London Palladium), Death Comes to Pemberley (Mill at Sonning/UK tour), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (Prince Edward Theatre), Fame (NYMT), Austenland, The Singing Revolution (Savoy Theatre), White Christmas, Top Hat (Mill at Sonning), Pippin (Theatre Royal Drury Lane), Cruel Intentions: The 90s Musical (The Other Palace/UK tour), The Last Five Years (Southwark Playhouse/Garrick Theatre/China tour – Off West End Awards for Best Director of a Musical and Best Musical Production and WhatsOnStage Award nomination for Best Off-West End Production), Proud (Turbine Theatre), The Astonishing Times of Timothy Cratchit (Hope Mill Theatre), Aspects of Love, Pippin (Hope Mill Theatre/Southwark Playhouse), The View Upstairs (Soho Theatre), Peter Pan (Park Theatre), Rasheeda Speaking, bash (Trafalgar Studios), Dear Brutus (Southwark Playhouse), An American in Paris (Dominion Theatre), Fourplay (Theatre503), The Verb ‘To Love’, Made in Britain (Old Red Lion), The Surplus, All The Ways to Say Goodbye (Young Vic), The Monster Bride (Tristan Bates Theatre) and Last Online Today and Guinea Pigs (Sheffield Crucible New Writing Project). His opera work includes Manon (ROH).
LISTINGS INFORMATION
MENIER CHOCOLATE FACTORY
MIDNIGHT AT THE NEVER GET
Until 12 September
TRU
Until 14 November
FOURTEEN AGAIN
21 November – 27 February 2027
Box Office: 020 7378 1713 (£2.50 transaction fee per booking)
QUENTIN TARANTINO’S NEW SWASHBUCKLING STAGE COMEDY
THE POPINJAY CAVALIER
TO OPEN AT THE PHOENIX THEATRE IN LONDON’S WEST END
SACHA BARON COHEN TO STAR IN THE TITLE ROLE
Sony Pictures Entertainment and Sonia Friedman Productions today announce that The Popinjay Cavalier, a new swashbuckling comedy written and directed by Quentin Tarantino – the first play written by Tarantino for the stage – will star Sacha Baron Cohen in the title role.
The production opens at the Phoenix Theatre in London’s West End on 18 March 2027, with previews from 23 February, and is booking until 13 June. Tickets are on sale from 9am (BST) to those who signed up for priority access, with public on sale from 12pm (BST) today. Tickets are from £25, with over 16,000 tickets under £50 across the run.
Quentin Tarantino said today, “I’m keen with anticipation to give the West End a great night out.”
Sacha Baron Cohen added, “Quentin called, I said yes before he even got to say his first ‘motherfxxxer’. When the best director in the world calls, you don’t ask questions, I am beyond delighted that we will be losing our West End virginity together, I have made him promise not to be gentle.”
Tom Rothman, Chairman and CEO of Sony Pictures Entertainment’s Motion Picture Group, and Sonia Friedman said today, “It is a joy and an honour to be developing this play with Quentin – and obviously quite an adventure. How lucky we are that one of the great storytellers of our time has chosen to make his theatrical debut.
“To see Quentin in action in a rehearsal room is extraordinary. His delight in working with actors, fencers, acrobats, musicians and our creative team is infectious, and there is such pleasure in hearing his delicious language come alive and discovering what his world can become on stage.
“And now we have Sacha Baron Cohen at the heart of it all: a fearless, brilliantly inventive actor with the wit, mischief and daring this role demands. We feel immensely fortunate to be producing this show. Audiences are in for a tremendous treat.”
Set in 1830s Europe, The Popinjay Cavalier is a rambunctious comedy of deception and disguise inspired by the grand swashbuckling epics of stage and screen.
A sweeping celebration of theatre and its heightened romance, told with Tarantino’s signature style and unmistakable wit, The Popinjay Cavalier is inspired by the classic swashbuckler genre of old Hollywood, including the writings of George Bruce, Ernst Vajda and Jesse Lasky Jr.
Also announced today is the creative team joining Tarantino – Scenic and Costume Design is by Tom Pye; with Lighting Design by Natasha Chivers; Sound Design by Ian Dickinson; the Fight Director is Philip d’Orleans; the Action Co-ordinator is Sam Lyon-Behan; Music is by Tim Phillips; Casting by Jim Carnahan, CSA; and the Associate Director is Jack Bradfield.
Full casting will be announced at a later date.
Quentin Tarantino is one of the most celebrated filmmakers of his generation. He made his directorial debut in 1992 with Reservoir Dogs, and then co-wrote, directed and starred in one of his most beloved films, Pulp Fiction, which won his first Oscar® for Best Screenplay. Following the highly acclaimed films Jackie Brown, Kill Bill Vol. 1 and Vol. 2, and Death Proof, Tarantino then released his World War II epic, Inglourious Basterds, Django Unchained (which wonhis second Oscar® for Best Screenplay), and TheHateful Eight. Tarantino’s most recent film, Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood, was nominated for five Golden Globes, ten BAFTAs, and ten Oscars®. Tarantino released his first novel, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, in 2021 – it has been published in 31 languages and became an instant number one on The New York Times Best Seller Lists. In 2022 Tarantino published his highly acclaimed follow-up, Cinema Speculation which also debuted on The New York Times Best Seller List.
A three-time Academy Award-nominated actor and screenwriter, Sacha Baron Cohen is an iconic actor, comedian, screenwriter, producer, and director. Best known for his creation and portrayal of legendary characters Ali G, Borat Sagdiyev, Brüno Gehard, Admiral General Aladeen and Erran Morad, Baron Cohen has also acted in Adam McKay’s Talladega Nights, Tom Hooper’s Les Misérables, Tim Burton’s Sweeney Todd and Martin Scorsese’s Hugo. Baron Cohen starred in Alfonso Cuarón’s Apple TV+ series Disclaimer opposite Cate Blanchett. In 2026, he starred opposite Rosamund Pike in Netflix’s Ladies First, a No 1 film on Netflix worldwide, and appeared in Prime Video’s No 1 film Balls Up. In 2020, he wowed audiences and critics alike with his work in two timely films: Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery Of Prodigious Bribe To American Regime For Make Benefit Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, for which he earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay and won two Golden Globe Awards, making Baron Cohen the first person in Golden Globes history to win two awards for the same film character after having previously won for his lead performance in the original Borat in 2007; and Aaron Sorkin’s The Trial of The Chicago 7, for which he received Academy Award, Golden Globe and SAG nominations for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of legendary activist Abbie Hoffman. Upcoming, Baron Cohen makes his feature directorial debut with Amazon MGM Studios’ Ali G: Who Iz I?, returning as his famed character Ali G. The film opens in cinemas worldwide on 23 October for an exclusive one-weekend run.
Joshua Beaumont and Matthew Emeny for The Production Garden present a brand new adaptation of one of Britain’s greatest tv comedies
Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais’
Porridge
Adapted and Directed by Samuel Freeman
2027 UK Tour – Tickets On Sale 16 October
Joshua Beaumont and Matthew Emeny for The Production Garden will present a brand new adaptation of Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais’ Porridge adapted and directed by Samuel Freeman, on a UK Tour from September 2027 (general on-sale: 16 October www.porridgeonstage.co.uk).
The sharp, hilarious, and laugh-out-loud funny iconic BBC sitcom is spectacularly brought to life on stage with perfectly observed characters in some of their most memorable moments – all delivered by a talented cast of three! Casting to be announced.
Join career criminal Fletcher and wide-eyed cellmate Godber as they navigate life inside Her Majesty’s Prison Slade with wit, wisdom, and the occasional dodgy scheme.
Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais (Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?, Porridge, Auf Wiedersehen, Pet and Lovejoy) have enjoyed a unique creative partnership in television, movies and theatre, spanning more than five decades for which they each received an Order of the British Empire for their services to Drama.
Dick Clement said: “Someone once pointed out that the best comedies thrive in captive situations. He or she quoted Steptoe and Son, where a father and son are shackled together trying to get along and nearly come to blows in the process.
“If you accept that premise, then Porridge is the ultimate example, where our characters are literally locked up behind bars. Even the Prison Officers suffer in a similar way where Mr. Barrowclough, not looking forward to going home to a wife we never meet, says plaintively: “Sometimes I wish I was in here with you lot”.
“I look forward to seeing our creation in the theatre. If the audience feels confined, they can of course make a run for it. Instead, the hope is that they will enjoy sharing the familiar experiences of Fletcher, Godber, Mr. Mackay and the entire team. And when they have finished laughing, they will find that the doors to the street are unlocked.”
Samuel Freeman is a Director, Composer and Performer who has been an associate artist of The Production Garden since its inception. Directing with the company includes The Importance of Being Earnest and The Mumford & Sons Story. He has worked as both Musical Director and Theatrical Collaborator on Sherlock & Watson: A Murder in the Garden, Romeo & Juliet, Sense and Sensibility, and Pride & Prejudice.
Samuel Freeman said: “I am utterly thrilled at the opportunity to bring Porridge back to the stage, touring across the UK in 2027. Dick and Ian’s script contains so many great moments of this national treasure of a British sitcom, bottled up into one fantastic evening of entertainment. Full of unforgettable characters, razor sharp wit and the heartfelt truth of a friendship found in one of the toughest places!”
“I’m excited to be adapting this classic into a fresh new production that looks to celebrate the well known adventures of Fletcher, Godber and co, through all the theatrical magic that makes British theatre something to love and enjoy.”
The 2027 tour dates for Porridge are: The Rondo Theatre, Bath (9-11 September); Salisbury Playhouse (13-18 September); Medina Theatre, Isle of Wight (21 September); The Lighthouse, Poole (24-25 September); Lichfield Garrick (28 September-1 October); New Theatre, Peterborough (2 October); Harrogate Theatre (4-5 October); Lancaster Grand Theatre (6-7 October); Lowther Pavilion, Lytham Saint Annes (8 October); Queen’s Theatre, Barnstaple (9 October); The Riverfront, Newport (14 October); The Roses Theatre, Tewkesbury (15 October); Ffwrnes Theatre, Llanelli (16 October); Regent Theatre, Ipswich (18 October); Marina Theatre, Lowestoft (20 October); Victoria Wood Theatre, Bowness-on-Windermere (22-23 October); The Montgomery Theatre, Sheffield (25-27 October); Buxton Opera House (28-30 October); Floral Pavilion, New Brighton (1-4 November); Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury (5-6 November) and BEAM, Hertford (12 November).
The Production Garden is an award-winning theatre and event production company, co-founded by Joshua Beaumont and Matthew Emeny. Acclaimed productions include Michael Morpurgo’s Private Peaceful, adapted and directed by Simon Reade (UK Tour 2026; Double Fringe Award nominee); Isobel McArthur’s Pride and Prejudice* (*Sort Of) (CAA, Toronto, North American Premiere); Michelle Collins in Motorhome Marilyn by Ben Weatherill (World Premiere, Edinburgh); Ian Ashpitel and Jonty Stephens as Eric & Ern (Garrick West End, Curve, Lowry and UK Tour); TPG’s in-house production of Pride and Prejudice at The Abbey (Bath and Tewkesbury Abbeys, 2026); Why I Stuck A Flare Up My Arse For England (2025 Offie Award Winner, Adelaide Fringe Award Winner, Holden Street Theatre Award Winner; Southwark Playhouse, UK Tour, Australia); A Shoddy Detective and the Art of Deception (ARTS West End and UK Tour)
WORLD PREMIERE OF THE NEW MUSICAL WRITTEN BY EMMA THOMPSON WILL OPEN AT ALDWYCH THEATRE, LONDON WITH PERFORMANCES FROM 6 NOVEMBER 2027 NannyMcPheeTheMusical.com
SHE’S ON HER WAY…
Tickets for the highly anticipated new musical stage adaptation of Nanny McPhee, will go on sale via NannyMcPheeTheMusical.com from 12pm on Wednesday 14 October 2026.
It is announced today that the world premiere production, with a book by Academy Award®-winning actor and screenwriter Emma Thompson, and music by singer-songwriter Gary Clark,will open at the Aldwych Theatre in London’s West End with performances from Saturday 6 November 2027.
Based on the beloved Nanny McPhee films, and the Nurse Matilda character by Christianna Brand and Edward Ardizzone that inspired them, the new musical will bring the magical world of Nanny McPhee to the stage for the first time.
When the mysterious figure of Nanny McPhee arrives at the Browns’ door she discovers a household in chaos; anarchic children who have driven away every Nanny before her, a desperate father, a donkey that is out of control, and a baby who will stop at nothing. Armed with her strange knobbly stick, exceedingly unorthodox methods and quite a lot of magic, Nanny McPhee begins to restore harmony. And as it turns out, the children aren’t the only family members who have lessons to learn.
Universal Pictures, Working Title Films and Three Strange Angels first brought Nanny McPhee to the screen in the 2005 film written by and starring Emma Thompson, alongside Colin Firth, Angela Lansbury, Kelly Macdonald, Imelda Staunton, Celia Imrie and Thomas Brodie-Sangster. Thompson returned to write and star in the 2010 sequel Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang.
Although casting is still to be confirmed, an award-winning creative team is already at work bringing Nanny McPhee to life on stage. The musical has a book by Academy Award®, BAFTA, Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning actor and writer Emma Thompson, who won anAcademy Award® for Best Adapted Screenplay for Sense and Sensibility, music by singer-songwriter Gary Clark, frontman of the band Danny Wilson and composer of the music for Sing Street on stage and screen, and original lyrics by Emma Thompsonand Gary Clark.
Nanny McPhee will be directed by Katy Rudd (Ballet Shoes and The Ocean at the End of the Lane), with set and costume designs by the Tony and Olivier Award-winning Rob Howell (Matilda the Musical) and Musical Staging and choreography by Ellen Kane (Paddington: The Musical), who won the 2023 World Choreography Award for Best Motion Picture Choreographyfor her work on the film adaptation of Matilda the Musical.
The world-class creative team also includes orchestrations by Tony and Olivier Award-winning Simon Hale (Spring Awakening, Girl From the North Country), music supervision by Nigel Lilley (Follies, Next to Normal, Newsies), with music arrangements by Simon Hale and Nigel Lilley. Lighting is by multi award winning designer Howard Hudson (& Juliet, Starlight Express and Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812), sound design by Olivier and Tony Award-winning Ian Dickinson for Autograph (Company, Angels in America, Jerusalem), illusions by Chris Fisher, a Tony Award-winning illusion and visual effects designer and a member of The Magic Circle (Stranger Things: The First Shadow, Back to the Future: The Musical, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child), puppetry by Samuel Wyer (Wolf, Witch, Giant, Fairy and The Ocean at the End of the Lane), projections by Tony and Olivier Award-winning Andrzej Goulding (Life of Pi, & Juliet, Groundhog Day) and casting by What’s On Stage Award-winning Natalie Gallacher CDG(for Pippa Aillon and Natalie Gallacher Casting) (Come From Away, Spring Awakening). The show will be general managed by Playful Productions.
Nanny McPhee is presented by Universal Theatrical Group and Working Title Films in association with Studiocanal on Stage and MGM on Stage. The show is produced by Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Lindsay Doran, Emma Thompson, Paul Warwick Griffin, Gareth Hewitt Williams and Rebecca Quigleyfor Working Title Films.
Richmond Theatre – until Saturday 10th October 2026
Reviewed by Carly Burlinge
4****
There is a particular kind of dread that only live theatre can deliver — the kind that creeps up your spine in real time, in the same room as you, with no camera cut, no close-up, and no post-production trickery to save you. The Haunting of Hill House, adapted for the stage, understands this instinctively. It doesn’t try to out-scare the Netflix series or to out-write Shirley Jackson’s original novel; instead, it finds a theatrical language all its own — one built from shadow, silence, and suggestion — and for the most part, it works beautifully.
The atmosphere is unquestionably the star of the evening. The production leans hard into everything that theatre does better than film: darkness that is actually dark, sound that you feel in your chest before you consciously hear it, and empty space that the audience’s own imagination fills with far more than any special effect could. The set — a skeletal, subtly tilting version of Hill House itself — shifts and warps between scenes in a way that keeps the audience perpetually off-balance, never quite sure what corner of the house they’re looking at or what might be standing just out of view in it. The lighting design deserves special mention here, because it does something quietly remarkable: it turns ordinary theatre space into a series of corners you’re afraid to investigate. Shadows pool in places they shouldn’t, doorways seem to breathe, and the house itself feels less like a backdrop and more like a character — patient, watchful, and hungry. The soundscape completes the effect, layering whispers beneath the dialogue, creaks that have no obvious source, and low, wrong frequencies that sit just under the level of conscious hearing. You feel the house before you ever see it, and long after you’ve left the building, you keep feeling it.
The performances hold their own against all that atmosphere, which is no small feat. The ensemble is tight and well-drilled, each actor moving through the space with the kind of precision that makes the scares land cleanly rather than clumsily. But the production is smartest when it remembers that the real haunting isn’t the house at all — it’s what the characters carry into it. Grief, guilt, and the stubborn refusal to let go of the dead are the true ghosts here, and the script gives those quieter moments room to breathe between the shocks. The central performance, in particular, grounds the supernatural chaos in something painfully, recognizably human, and it’s in those scenes — two people in a room, saying the things they’ve never been able to say — that the show is at its most unsettling. The house, it turns out, doesn’t need to do very much at all; it just needs to give people permission to tear themselves apart.
Where the production stumbles is chiefly in its second act, which occasionally over-explains what the first act so beautifully left ambiguous. There is a temptation, common to adaptations of well-loved horror, to spell things out for the audience — to make sure they’ve understood the rules of the haunting, the history of the house, the meaning of every apparition. But Jackson’s genius was in what she withheld, and the show is at its best when it trusts the audience to fill the dark spaces themselves. A few of the scares, too, land with a thud rather than a whisper — loud, sudden, and effective in the moment, but less lingering than the quieter dread that surrounds them. And there is one monologue near the end that tells us, at length, things we had already felt perfectly well on our own. These are not fatal flaws — the production’s strengths far outweigh its missteps — but they do mean that the second half never quite matches the haunting, delicate power of the first.
The verdict, then, is a genuinely unsettling, beautifully crafted piece of gothic theatre that respects its source material while finding a stage language entirely its own. It is a show that understands the difference between a jump scare and a haunting, and that knows the latter is far more powerful — and far harder to shake off. Bring a friend to hold onto during the dark bits, and maybe someone to walk you home after. Just don’t be surprised if, on the way, you find yourself glancing back at the house you’ve just left — and wondering whether it’s really the house you’re still thinking about, or something it left behind in you.
FIVE ACTORS 189 FIVE-STAR REVIEWS AND NOW, FIVE PRODUCTIONS! YOU REALLY COULDN’T WRITE IT!
Live from the casts of Operation Mincemeat in London (West End), New York (Broadway), Chicago (North American leg of the world tour) and Norwich (UK leg of the world tour), during curtain call of each of their respective shows last night, it was announced that the Tony®and Olivier® Award-winning musical Operation Mincemeat, is officially heading to Australia as the next leg of its World Tour, set to premiere at Comedy Theatre in Melbourne in September 2027, with further cities to be announced. JuliaKnitel (Broadway’s Ewen Montagu), MadeleineJackson–Smith (West End’s, Ewen Montagu), HollySumpton (UK Tour’s Ewen Montagu) and KatieKleiger (North American Tour’s Ewen Montagu) each gave a speech simultaneously announcing the fifth production on its journey across the globe. The search for the cast will commence in early 2027.
Join the Official Tour Waitlist here to be first in line for tickets and get access to exclusive perks.
The year is 1943 and we’re losing the war. Luckily, we’re about to gamble all our futures on a stolen corpse. Operation Mincemeat is the fast-paced, hilarious and unbelievable true story of the twisted secret mission that won the Allies World War II. The question is, how did a well dressed corpse wrong-foot Hitler?
Jon Thoday, Producer at Avalon, said: “It’s incredibly exciting to be invited to produce Operation Mincemeat in Australia and to be able to bring the show to a whole new audience. From its beginnings in a 77-seat London fringe theatre, the show is now playing simultaneously in the West End and on Broadway, with a world tour underway, so far spanning the UK and North America. Australia will be the fifth production of Operation Mincemeat and the next chapter in its extraordinary journey.”
Operation Mincemeat is currently in performances in the West End, on Broadway and has just launched its world tour, which began with a UK leg, that has recently been extended into 2027, and is now weeks into its journey across North America. On 20th September, the production launched the North American leg of the tour launched with two performances at the Providence Performing Arts Center, Rhode Island, welcoming a combined audience of 5,200 – the production’s biggest audience to date. On 26th September, across the North American leg, UK leg, Broadway and the West End productions, 9,734 agents, nearly 10,000, watched the production in one day. The show’s international journey will continue with Australia as its fifth production, before travelling on to New Zealand, China and Mexico, taking Operation Mincemeat across four continents.
Across over 2,000 performances, Operation Mincemeat has cultivated a fervent fanbase, affectionately dubbed “Mincefluencers.” On Broadway alone, more than 5,000 audience members – roughly one in 25 – have bought tickets for multiple performances, including 205 superfans who have purchased tickets for ten or more shows.
Operation Mincemeat has been nominated for 68 awards since opening at the 77-seat New Diorama Theatre in 2019, winning 24, including Best Musical 4 times from the Olivier Awards®, WhatsOnStage Awards, BroadwayWorld Theater Fans’ Choice Awards, and off-West End Awards. On Broadway, the show was nominated for 4 Tony Awards®in 2025, including Best Musical. The production won Best Featured Actor in a Musical for Jak Malone’s portrayal of Hester Leggatt, who previously won the Olivier Award® in the same category. The production has also received nominations for Outstanding Production of a Musical at the Drama League Awards, Outstanding New Broadway Musical at the Outer Critics Circle Awards, Best Musical at the BroadwayWorld Theater Fans’ Choice Awards, and Favourite New Musical at the Broadway.com Audience Choice Awards.
Written by triple Tony Award® nominees SpitLip (comprised of David Cumming, Felix Hagan, Natasha Hodgson, and Zoë Roberts), and directed by Robert Hastie, Operation Mincemeat is currently on its 19th extension, running until 29th May 2027 in London at the Fortune Theatre which takes the production into its 5th year in the West End, while simultaneously playing on Broadway, and has launched its world tour in the UK and US.
Operation Mincemeat is produced on Broadway and in the West End by Avalon (in association with SpitLip). The show was commissioned by New Diorama Theatre, co-commissioned by The Lowry, and also supported by the Rhinebeck Writers Retreat.
