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blackpoolgrand.co.uk ISSUE NINE
RUFUS HOUND. SUSIE BLAKE. A WICKEDLEY FUNNY THRILLER WHERE DINNER IS ONLY THE FIRST DISASTER
CLOCKING IN, KICKING OFF:
Why 9 to 5 The Musical is a Show With a Smile and a Spine There are some musicals that arrive with a tap on the shoulder, and others that burst through the office door in heels, hairspray and high-voltage harmony, scattering paperwork as they go. 9 to 5 The Musical is very much the latter: bright, brassy, funny, furious in all the right places, and powered by the unmistakable sparkle of Dolly Parton. Coming to Blackpool Grand Theatre from Tuesday 21 to Saturday 25 July, this brand-new touring production brings one of the most joyfully rebellious musicals of recent years to The Grand’s stage, with a story that may wear shoulder pads and a 1980s smile but still lands with deliciously modern force. At its heart are three women who have simply had enough. Violet, Doralee and Judy are office workers trapped under the thumb of a boss whose ego is larger than his desk and whose attitude belongs in the filing cabinet marked “absolutely not”. Pushed to breaking point by sexism, stupidity and workplace indignity, they hatch a plan that turns fantasy into full-blown
farce. What follows is part comedy caper, part revenge dream, and part glorious celebration of friendship under fluorescent lighting. The genius of 9 to 5 The Musical is that it never asks the audience to choose between laughter and bite. It gives you both. One moment you are watching the kind of broad, fizzy theatrical chaos that makes a packed auditorium shake with laughter; the next, you are reminded how powerful it feels to see underestimated people take up space, find their voice and realise that solidarity can be its own form of dynamite. And then, of course, there is Dolly. Music and lyrics by Dolly Parton are not merely a credit here; it is a promise. Her sound runs through the show like sunshine through blinds: witty, warm, instantly hummable and edged with the emotional intelligence that has made her one of the most beloved artists in the world. The title number alone is enough to send a ripple of recognition through the audience, but the musical does not simply lean on one famous song. It expands the world of the film with a score full of country-pop brightness, heartfelt solos and big ensemble numbers that know exactly when to wink and when to roar.
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This new production also arrives with a cast built to make the office politics pop. Jade Marvin takes on Violet, the sharp, capable woman who has spent too long watching lesser men rise above her. Karla Tracey plays Doralee, the role made famous on screen by Dolly herself, bringing glamour, grit and heart to a woman too easily judged by appearances. Kayla Carter is Judy, stepping into a new life with nerves, hope and a growing sense of her own power. Opposite them, Tim Rogers plays Hart, the boss audiences will love to loathe, while the brilliantly versatile Jessica Martin appears as Roz, a character whose devotion, delusion and comic timing can steal a scene before you have quite realised it has happened. By the end, you are not just tapping your feet. You are rooting for the women. You are booing the boss. You are laughing at the absurdity of power in the wrong hands. And, quite possibly, you are wondering whether Monday morning might be improved by a little more courage, a little more friendship, and a lot more Dolly. 9 to 5 The Musical clocks in at Blackpool Grand Theatre from Tuesday 21 to Saturday 25 July.
Hitchcock Made It Iconic.
NOW SEE IT BREATHE. You know the title before you know the details. Dial M for Murder has that rare quality: three words and the atmosphere changes. For many, it immediately conjures Alfred Hitchcock’s legendary 1954 film - cool, elegant, dangerous, and wound as tightly as a watch spring. Before Hitchcock made it cinema history, Frederick Knott’s story was a stage phenomenon, and that is where its danger truly belongs. Live, in the theatre, there is no camera to guide your eye, no edit to release the pressure, no safe distance between you and the room where the
crime is being prepared. The audience becomes complicit. We watch the plan form. We notice the details. We wait for the phone to ring. Coming to Blackpool Grand Theatre from Tuesday 15 to Saturday 19 September, is not simply one for Hitchcock fans. It is for anyone who loves the exquisite pleasure of a thriller done properly: stylish, intelligent, nerve-tightening and full of the kind of suspense that makes an auditorium collectively hold its breath. Set in London in the 1950s, Dial M for Murder centres on Tony Wendice, a former tennis professional whose polished life with his wealthy wife Margot hides something rotten beneath the surface. Tony believes he has designed the perfect
NOW YOU SEE HIM: Every seaside town knows something about illusion. The lights come on, the music swells, and for a while the world looks brighter than it did outside. Blackpool understands that promise better than most, which makes The Disappearing Man feel instantly at home on the Grand Theatre stage. Coming to Blackpool Grand Theatre from Tuesday 03 to Saturday 07 November, this new drama by multi award-winning, BAFTAnominated writer Kenny Emson follows washedup magician
murder. He has thought of everything: motive, opportunity, alibi, timing. His plan is controlled, calculated and chillingly neat. But murder, like theatre, is live. Hitchcock understood that terror does not always need thunder. Sometimes it is a key, a handbag, a pair of scissors, a voice at the wrong moment. This stage production has the chance to return that suspense to its purest form: bodies in a room, lies spoken aloud, danger close enough to feel. Dial M for Murder is at Blackpool Grand Theatre from Tuesday 15 to Saturday 19 September.
THE DISAPPEARING MAN COMES TO THE SEASIDE!
Bazza Cadabra as he returns to the faded showbiz world of Clacton-on-Sea for one final comeback. Twenty years on, Bazza wants the applause again. He wants the spotlight. He wants to prove that he has not vanished from his own story. But this is not simply a tale of tricks, ego and old routines. At its heart is a father and son, bound together by secrets, regret and unfinished business. Emson’s credits suggest a writer with a sharp instinct for mystery, rhythm and emotional reveal. He co-created and co-wrote the BBC’s BAFTA-nominated murder mystery The Last Hours of Laura K, adapted Agatha Christie’s The Coming
of Mr Quin for digital media and has written for Doctors and EastEnders. That mix of suspense, character and popular drama feels perfectly suited to a play where every flourish may conceal a wound. For Blackpool audiences, The Disappearing Man promises an evocative night of theatre: live magic, faded glamour, family secrets and the ache of being seen before the final curtain falls. The Disappearing Man appears at Blackpool Grand Theatre from Tuesday 03 to Saturday 07 November.
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A BLACKPOOL GRAND THEATRE AND SHEFFIELD THEATRES CO-PRODUCTION
WHERE THE SUN SHINES BRIGHTLY
NORTHERN ARTS REVIEW
EAST MIDLANDS THEATRE
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH
PLAYS INTERNATIONAL
ALL THAT DAZZLES
EVERYTHING THEATRE
MORNING STAR
NORTH WEST END
If summer had a soundtrack, it would sound a lot like Summer Holiday. Sun-drenched, joy-filled, and bursting with the optimism of endless blue skies, this iconic musical comes to Blackpool Grand Theatre from Wednesday 29 July to Saturday 08 August, promising the ultimate escape at the very heart of the seaside. Following the huge success of last year’s Grease (with Pitlochry Festival Theatre), which delighted audiences night after night, this is the show that takes that feel-good magic and turns the volume up even higher.
Based on the much-loved 1963 film that cemented Cliff Richard as a bona fide screen idol, Summer Holiday The Musical captures the irresistible thrill of setting off on an adventure with nothing but friends, music and the open road ahead. The story may be rooted in the golden age of British cinema, but its spirit feels timeless. At its heart is a soundtrack that defined a generation and still has the power to lift the room. From the infectious title number Summer Holiday and the cheeky charm of Bachelor Boy, to the rock and roll swagger of Move It, the exuberance of Dancing Shoes, the anthemic The Young Ones and the laid-back warmth of In the Country, every song is a reminder of just how joyful pop music can be.
This brand-new production is a major coproduction between Blackpool Grand Theatre and Sheffield Theatres, bringing together two leading producing houses to create a musical event made for summer nights. There is no better place for this story to land than Blackpool, the UK’s most beloved seaside escape and the spiritual home of the great British summer holiday. Add in The Grand’s glorious auditorium and the buzz of a shared night out, and you have all the ingredients for something truly special. Summer Holiday The Musical is the perfect invitation to gather friends, family and fellow music lovers for a few hours of pure escapism. Warm, nostalgic and utterly irresistible, this is the one show you will want to say you were there for.
Tickets from £18, Kids go FREE* | Wed 29 Jul to Sat 08 Aug 2026 | Book Now at blackpoolgrand.co.uk
THE SILENCE AT THE GRAND
Some stories become famous. Others become part of the nervous system. The Silence of the Lambs is not simply one of the great thrillers. It is one of cinema’s defining works: a film so perfectly controlled, so chillingly performed and so psychologically precise that it changed the shape of screen suspense. It is the kind of title that still darkens the room the moment you say it. Now, from Monday 11 to Saturday 16 January 2027, that darkness comes as The Silence of the Lambs arrives in a major World Premiere stage tour. This is not just another adaptation. It is a theatrical event: the first chance for audiences to encounter one of the most celebrated thrillers of all time live on stage, where every silence breathes, every look lands, and every word feels dangerously close. The legacy is extraordinary. The film achieved the legendary “Big Five” sweep at the Academy Awards, winning Best Picture, Best Actor for Anthony Hopkins, Best Actress for Jodie Foster, Best Director for Jonathan Demme, and Best Adapted Screenplay for Ted Tally. Only two other films have ever completed that same astonishing Oscar triumph, which puts The Silence of the Lambs in the rarest company imaginable. At the heart of that fear is Dr Hannibal Lecter, one of fiction’s most compelling monsters: cultured, brilliant, amused, unspeakably dangerous. In this world premiere tour, he is played by John Partridge, a performer with the command, poise and theatrical electricity the role demands. Known to millions as Christian Clarke in BBC One’s EastEnders and celebrated for major stage work including CATS and Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, Partridge brings a performer’s precision to a character who must never be overplayed. Lecter’s horror is not in how much he does, but how little he needs to do. He waits. He listens. He sees.
Opposite him is Clarice Starling, the FBI trainee drawn into the hunt for a brutal killer, forced to seek insight from the imprisoned psychiatrist whose mind may be more dangerous than the case itself. Clarice is one of the great thriller heroines because her courage is not decorative. It is hard-won. She is watched, tested, patronised and underestimated, yet she keeps stepping forward. Her encounters with Lecter are not conversations so much as psychological duels, where memory becomes evidence and vulnerability becomes risk. That is why the stage could make this story feel newly unsettling. Film gave us the closeup. Theatre gives us proximity. In The Grand’s auditorium, there is no screen to protect us, no edit to release the tension, no distance between the audience and the silence. Adapted for the stage by Gina Gionfriddo, whose credits include House of Cards and Law & Order, and directed by Nikolai Foster, this world premiere tour promises to bring the story back to its most dangerous essentials: mind against mind, predator against investigator, fear against courage. For Blackpool audiences, this is a rare opportunity to be among the first to experience a landmark thriller reborn for the theatre. The Silence of the Lambs endures because it understands something deeply uncomfortable: the most frightening monsters are not always wild. The Silence of the Lambs appears at Blackpool Grand Theatre from Monday 11 to Saturday 16 January 2027 as part of its major World Premiere stage tour.
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(with the horrible bits left in!) Forget dusty textbooks and polite museum voices. When Horrible Histories storms into Blackpool Grand Theatre from Thursday 15 to Sunday 18 October, history comes back from the dead - and it is rude, ridiculous and very, very funny. In two separate live shows, Terrible Tudors and Awful Egyptians, Birmingham Stage Company brings the much-loved Horrible Histories world to the stage with actors, outrageous facts and eyepopping 3D special effects that make historical figures and events leap towards the audience. The appeal is beautifully simple: children get all the bits adults usually try to tidy up. The beheadings. The mummies. The rotten rulers. The gruesome deaths. The strange punishments. The kind of facts that make young eyes widen and parents secretly laugh because, actually, they are learning something.
Terrible Tudors digs into one of the bloodiest, boldest periods in British history, where power, plotting and very sharp axes were never far away. Expect Henry VIII, Elizabeth I and the sort of royal behaviour that makes today’s family arguments look positively civilised. Where, Awful Egyptians, meanwhile, heads for the pyramids, the pharaohs and the wonderfully revolting world of death, decay and mummification. It is ancient history with the boring bandages ripped off. What makes Horrible Histories work so brilliantly is that it never talks down to children. It trusts them to enjoy clever jokes, big ideas and genuinely fascinating facts, provided they arrive with enough chaos, silliness and slime. Parents may book it as a half-term treat, but the real joy is watching the whole family get swept along together. Bring the School, Bring the children. Bring the grandparents. Bring a strong stomach! Horrible Histories: Terrible Tudors and Awful Egyptians appear at Blackpool Grand Theatre from Thursday 15 to Sunday 18 October.
The Friends of The Grand Every great theatre has more than one story. There is the story told on stage, in music, drama, comedy and applause. Then there is the quieter story behind the scenes: the story of people who give their time, energy and loyalty because they know that a theatre like Blackpool Grand must be cherished into the future.
Geraldine Porter, Chair of The Friends of The Grand, says: “The Friends have always been driven by deep affection for this remarkable theatre. We are incredibly proud of what our members have helped achieve, from the early campaign to save the building to the projects we continue to support today. Every event, donation and membership helps protect The Grand’s heritage while strengthening its future.”
For more than half a century, The Friends of The Grand have been part of that story.
Details of upcoming Friends events can be found towards the back of this magazine.
Formed in 1973, when the theatre’s future was uncertain, The Friends became part of the movement to protect one of Blackpool’s great cultural treasures. Their support helped secure The Grand’s future, including the landmark purchase of the building in 1981.
For more than fifty years, the Friends have helped keep The Grand shining. Their story is one of loyalty, generosity and quiet determination - and it continues with every member who supports the theatre today – to join The Friends visit blackpoolgrand.co.uk/friends.
Since then, the Friends have continued to support, enhance and protect the theatre. Their contributions can be seen and felt throughout the building, from seating and carpeting to technical equipment, lighting and access improvements. These details may not always take centre stage, but they help make every visit more comfortable, welcoming and memorable. The Friends also bring people closer to the theatre through events, talks, visits, fundraising activities and social occasions. They create a community around The Grand: one built on shared affection, pride and a belief in the importance of live theatre.
Friends of The Grand is a registered charity in the UK, No. 514538 | Registered address: Blackpool Grand Theatre, 33 Church Street, Blackpool, Lancashire FY1 1HT
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The One Ticket You’ll Wish You’d Booked! Punch is already shaping up to be ‘that production’. Coming to Blackpool Grand Theatre from Tuesday 09 to Saturday 13 March 2027. James Graham’s acclaimed, four-time Olivier Award-nominated play arrives with the kind of momentum theatres dream of: major critical acclaim, celebrated runs in the West End and on Broadway, a powerful true story, and the unmistakable feeling that audiences are about to witness something important. If you are only booking one theatre ticket this year, make it this one! That is not said lightly. Some shows entertain beautifully and send you home smiling, others shake something loose. Punch belongs to the second kind. It is theatre with a pulse, a conscience and an emotional force that lingers long after the lights come up. Written by James Graham, one of Britain’s most vital contemporary playwrights, Punch tells the true story of Jacob, a teenager from Nottingham whose life is changed forever after one impulsive act of violence leads to tragic consequences. After serving a prison sentence, Jacob struggles to find direction, until an extraordinary meeting with Joan and David, the parents of his victim, James Hodgkinson, opens a path towards accountability, understanding and transformation.
It is a story that could so easily become a headline, a debate or a fixed opinion. Graham does something far more powerful. He places the human beings back at the centre. The result is a play about harm, grief, courage and the almost impossible work of hope. It asks what happens after the worst thing has happened. It asks how people live with consequence. It asks whether forgiveness is possible, whether change can be real, and whether connection can exist in the very place you would least expect to find it. That is why Punch has become one of the most talked-about plays of recent years. Its subject matter is difficult, but its effect is not bleak. Audiences have responded to its humanity: the sense that, even in the aftermath of devastating loss, there may still be room for truth, compassion and repair. The production comes to Blackpool following acclaimed runs in London and New York and arrives carrying serious theatrical weight. At the 2026 Olivier Awards, Punch received four nominations: Best New Play, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Lighting Design. The other thing about shows like this: people mean to book, then suddenly everyone else has. The best seats go first, the good performances fill, and the production that felt months away becomes the one you cannot get tickets for.
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For Blackpool Grand Theatre, this is a major moment in the 2027 calendar: a chance for audiences to experience a landmark contemporary play with national prestige, international recognition and a story of profound emotional charge. Book now. This is the one you will not want to miss! Punch is at Blackpool Grand Theatre from Tuesday 09 to Saturday 13 March 2027 (recommended age 12+yrs).
‘A STATE-OF-THE-NATION MASTERPIECE’ THE TELEGRAPH
SIX OF THE BEST
NIGHTS OUT IN BLACKPOOL New Dawn Fades
New Dawn Fades summons Joy Division and Manchester’s restless soul in a raw, atmospheric play pulsing with music, memory, youth, loss and post-punk electricity for devoted hearts everywhere.
Sat 05 September
Guilty or Not Guilty? Jeremy Bamber – The White House Farm Murders Mark Williams-Thomas leads a gripping live investigation into the White House Farm murders, inviting audiences to weigh evidence, doubt certainty and decide where the truth sits after decades later.
Thu 01 October
The Forbidden Realm of Conspiracies: Uncovered Step inside an immersive, unsettling night of conspiracy, perception and uncomfortable questions, where cinematic visuals and live audience moments challenge what you think you know about belief itself.
Tue 13 October
Two Mr Ps in a Podcast: Live – Let That Be A Lesson... The Two Mr Ps bring classroom chaos, staffroom survival and children’s accidental comedy to the stage in a laugh-packed live podcast for teachers, parents and survivors of school.
Sat 13 February
Dragged to the Musicals Divina De Campo leads a fierce, fabulous musical takeover, serving live vocals, West End sparkle and drag-show sass for anyone who likes their showstoppers loud, proud and glittering.
Sun 11 April
Dream Sing Loud. Cheer Local. There are moments when a theatre does more than present a show. It plants a flag. This summer, Blackpool Grand Theatre does exactly that with Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, playing from Wednesday 19 to Saturday 22 August. Bright, bold and bursting with music, this is one of the world’s best-loved family musicals - but what makes this production truly special is not only the famous songs or the dazzling coat. It is the fact that it is being made right here, by The Grand, as its own in-house Summer Youth Production. In a town built on entertainment, spectacle and the thrill of live performance, Blackpool Grand is not simply opening its doors to another musical. It is creating one from the inside out, giving young performers the chance to work with a professional team, stand on a historic stage and discover what they are capable of when ambition is matched with opportunity. Following the huge success of last year’s The Wind in the Willows, The Grand’s Summer Youth Production returns with fresh confidence, bigger colour and one of the most joyous titles in musical theatre. Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s Joseph is a show that practically glows from the first note. Every rehearsal, every note learned, every costume fitting, every backstage call and every moment of nerves before curtain-up becomes part of something bigger than a school holiday project. This is proper theatremaking. It asks for discipline, courage, teamwork and trust. It gives young people the rare chance to be part of a production with scale, standards and expectation - and to feel the roar of an audience willing them on. Adam Knight, Chief Executive of Blackpool Grand Theatre, says: “We are incredibly proud to bring our Summer Youth Production back to The Grand following the wonderful success of
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The Wind in the Willows. Joseph is the perfect show for this next chapter: joyful, ambitious and full of heart. Most importantly, it gives young people from across our community the chance to experience the magic, discipline and excitement of creating theatre at the highest level, on one of the most beautiful stages in the country. We hope audiences will come out in force to support them, celebrate them and be part of something genuinely special.” That call to support is important, because buying a ticket for this production does more than secure a seat for a brilliant night out. It backs young talent. It supports local creativity. It tells the next generation that their voices matter and that their dreams deserve room to grow. It also strengthens The Grand’s role as a creative home. Theatres are at their most alive when they are not only receiving work but making it; not only hosting stories, but shaping them. An inhouse production is a statement of confidence in the people, talent and imagination of a place. And audiences are in for a treat. Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is packed with songs that have become part of the nation’s musical memory: Any Dream Will Do, Close Every Door, Go, Go, Go Joseph and Benjamin Calypso among them.
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is at Blackpool Grand Theatre from Wednesday 19 to Saturday 22 August.
Bring Me Sunshine:
Eric and Ern are heading to The Grand! Some comedy never really leaves us. It lingers in the rhythm of a raised eyebrow, the timing of a pause, the daftness of a dance, and the glorious feeling of a nation laughing together. Eric and Ern bring the unmistakable world of Morecambe and Wise back to life in a show that has charmed audiences with its warmth, wit and uncanny affection. Performed by Jonty Stephens and Ian Ashpitel, the Olivier Award-nominated duo behind the celebrated hit Eric & Little Ern, this is not a dusty tribute act. It is a joyous theatrical time machine, filled with classic sketches, music, sunshine and the kind of beautifully silly comedy that still works because it was built properly in the first place.
The pair’s earlier work enjoyed a sell-out Edinburgh Fringe run, toured successfully and reached the West End, earning rave reviews and standing ovations. For Blackpool, this feels like a perfect fit. Blackpool understands Variety, showmanship and the deep pleasure of a proper laugh deserves a packed house for two of Britain’s best-loved comedy spirits. Book early, bring someone you love, and prepare to leave humming. Eric and Ern is a limited date run at Blackpool Grand Theatre from Thursday 04 to Saturday 06 February 2027.
John Barrowman: My Life In musicals Some performers do not so much walk on stage as switch the room on - John Barrowman has spent more than three decades doing exactly that, carrying the kind of charisma that belongs equally to the West End, Broadway, television, concert halls and Saturday-night entertainment.
Barrowman’s stage career is the stuff of proper musical theatre legend. He made his professional debut opposite Elaine Paige in Anything Goes, before going on to play leading roles across the West End and Broadway, including work in Sunset Boulevard, Miss Saigon, Chicago, La Cage aux Folles and The Phantom of the Opera.
For one night only, on Wednesday 30 September, he comes to Blackpool Grand Theatre with My Life In Musicals, a glittering evening built around the songs, stories and roles that have shaped his remarkable career.
Barrowman knows how to deliver a showstopper, but he also knows that the best musical theatre songs are never just about volume. They are about memory, longing, joy, survival and the beautiful madness of putting your heart into a melody.
For musical theatre lovers, this is not simply a concert. It is a journey through a life lived in show tunes: the big entrances, the emotional eleven o’clock numbers, the backstage memories and the sheer thrill of hearing a born entertainer take ownership of songs that have filled theatres across generations.
John Barrowman: My Life In Musicals is at Blackpool Grand Theatre on Wednesday 30 September.
Expect laughter, glamour, powerhouse vocals and the kind of theatrical generosity that makes an auditorium feel instantly alive.
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There is a particular sound that belongs only to pantomime. It is not simply applause, though there is always plenty of that. It is the roar of children spotting the villain before the hero does, the delighted groan of parents pretending not to love the terrible jokes, the full-throated chorus of “oh yes it is!” bouncing around a theatre that suddenly feels like one enormous family gathering. At Blackpool Grand Theatre, that sound is part of Christmas itself. This festive season, Blackpool’s No.1 Pantomime returns from Friday 04 December to Sunday 03 January 2027 with Jack and the Beanstalk, a giant adventure ready to climb straight into the heart of the holidays. Presented by Martin Dodd for UK Productions Ltd, in association with Blackpool Grand Theatre, this year’s panto promises everything audiences come for: BIG laughs, BIG songs, BIG spectacle, BIG personalities and, somewhere high above the clouds, one very big problem. And, oh yes it is!, still early to talk about Christmas, but honestly, we’re already halfway through the year and more than half the tickets have GONE! The summer diary is disappearing fast, and the best festive seats do not wait for anyone. Blackpool's No.1 panto at The Grand is not a last-minute thought; it is the family tradition people plan around. The favourite row, the best view for the little ones, the matinee that fits around grandparents, school friends and festive chaos - those are the seats that vanish first!
So, if you want the BEST of the beanstalk, book before everyone else starts climbing. This year’s adventure already has star power sprouting from the soil. Lisa George, much loved by millions as Beth Tinker in Coronation Street, appears as the magical Spirit of the Beans, bringing sparkle, warmth and that essential panto twinkle to the tale. She is joined by Blackpool favourite Steve Royle, returning by popular demand as Silly Simon after being named Best Comic at the UK Pantomime Awards 2025. Anyone who has seen Steve at The Grand knows exactly what that means: rapid-fire comedy, daft physical business, audience mischief and the glorious sense that no two performances will ever be quite the same. And just announced, familiar Blackpool favourite Ben Harlow will also be climbing back into The Grand’s festive spotlight as the fabulous Dame Trott. Following his hugely popular appearance as Widow Twankey in Aladdin, Ben returns with his trademark mix of warmth, quick-fire wit, outrageous glamour and a wardrobe that may need its own postcode. The story, of course, is a classic. Jack, his family, a cow, a handful of beans, a beanstalk that refuses to stop and a giant who really ought to have stayed above the clouds. But the joy of pantomime is not just what happens; it is how wildly it happens. Expect dazzling costumes, fabulous sets, cheeky comedy, spectacular choreography and the kind of festive theatrical magic that makes children sit forward in wonder and adults laugh louder than they expected to.
For little ones, it may be their first experience of live theatre: the lights dimming, the music striking up, the costumes glittering, the sudden realisation that stories can happen right in front of them. For older children, it is the thrill of joining in, laughing at jokes they are finally old enough to catch, and watching the grown-ups become just as ridiculous as everyone else. For adults, it is the rare joy of surrendering to silliness without apology. With tickets starting from £18, and performances running across the festive season, Jack and the Beanstalk is set to be one of the HOTTEST family tickets of Christmas. Accessible performances are also scheduled, helping even more audiences share in the laughter, music and magic. So don’t wait until the decorations are up, someone else has taken your favourite seats, or the family WhatsApp suddenly realises Christmas is coming. The giant is on his way, the beans are planted and the countdown has already started. Book now, shout loud, and get ready for a panto that is growing by the day. Jack and the Beanstalk is at Blackpool Grand Theatre from Friday 04 December to Sunday 03 January 2027.
Families are busy, and money is thought about carefully. Time together becomes precious, the right show has to earn its place in the festive calendar, and The Grand’s pantomime has earned that place year after year by giving audiences a proper event: not just something to watch, but something to remember.
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AT THE GR AND
ROMESH RANGANATHAN
TWO MR Ps IN A PODCAST:
ALAN CARR
WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE
LIVE – LET THAT BE A LESSON…
HAVE I SAID TOO MUCH?
THU 11 FEB 2027
SAT 13 FEB 2027
FRI 09 & SAT 10 APR 2027
The Portrait Sings in the Dark The Picture of Dorian Gray – A New Musical, coming to Blackpool Grand Theatre on Saturday 14 November.
ROSS NOBLE
LUCY BEAUMONT
COUNT ARTHUR STRONG
CRANIUM OF CURIOSITIES
BAD AT QUIZ SHOWS, GOOD WITH WEIRDOS
AND IT’S GOODNIGHT FROM ME!
WED 05 MAY 2027
SUN 09 MAY 2027
SAT 29 MAY 2027
*Please note: Comedic performances carry age guidance - please ask on booking.
Pure Imagination Some stories seem made for the stage: strange, sweet, mischievous and just the right side of outrageous. Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – The Musical is all of those things.
For BOP, this is the perfect canvas. Known for their ambition, commitment and local talent, the company has long brought scale and heart to The Grand’s stage.
That influence gives this new version a thrilling sense of scale and seriousness. Think sweeping melodies, heightened emotion, moral danger and the kind of theatrical darkness that does not apologise for being grand. Wilde’s tale has always lived somewhere between drawing-room elegance and nightmare, and a sung-through musical treatment feels exactly right. When words are not enough, the music can take over. At the centre is Dorian, young, beautiful and fatally vain, whose portrait begins to absorb the marks of age, corruption and sin while he remains untouched. It is one of literature’s most seductive bargains: eternal beauty in exchange for a ruined soul. As music, that bargain becomes even more dangerous. Desire can swell into an anthem. Guilt can creep through a minor key. The portrait, silent on the wall, becomes almost operatic: a witness, a warning, a wound.
Acclaimed local company Blackpool Operatic Players bring Dahl’s deliciously eccentric world to life, inviting audiences through the factory gates for a musical adventure filled with wonder, wit and more than a little chocolate-coated chaos. This is the story of young Charlie Bucket, a boy with very little in his pockets but a heart full of hope, who wins a golden ticket to visit the mysterious factory of Willy Wonka. Inside waits a world of impossible invention: rivers of chocolate, extraordinary sweets, curious children, moral lessons wrapped in mischief, and the kind of theatrical magic that makes families lean forward together.
A dark, sung-through reimagining of Oscar Wilde’s immortal story, heavily inspired by the great brooding musicals of the 1970s and 80s.
This is not a polite literary adaptation. It promises gothic glamour, emotional intensity and a return to the kind of bold, dark musical storytelling that trusts audiences to lean into obsession, temptation and consequence. With Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - The Musical, they have the chance to mix big musical numbers with Dahl’s wicked humour and a story that still speaks beautifully to children and adults alike. Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – The Musical is at Blackpool Grand Theatre from Wednesday 24 to Saturday 27 March 2027.
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For anyone who likes their theatre beautiful, theatrical and shadowed with danger, Dorian Gray is ready to look back. The Picture of Dorian Gray – A New Musical is at Blackpool Grand Theatre on Saturday 14 November.
WINNER - BEST NEW MUSICAL WHATSONSTAGE.COM AWARDS
The SMASH Hit Musical RETURNS TO BLACKPOOL! Some shows build an audience. Heathers The Musical built a movement.
Back at Blackpool Grand Theatre from Tuesday 27 to Saturday 31 October, this darkly funny, wildly popular musical returns following huge demand - and tickets are already going fast. That should surprise absolutely no one. Few modern musicals have gathered such a devoted following across generations of theatre lovers, from longtime fans of the original cult film to audiences discovering its explosive stage life for the first time. Winner of the WhatsOnStage Award for Best New Musical, Heathers The Musical has become one of the most successful and talked-about touring musicals of recent years, mixing razorsharp comedy, powerhouse pop-rock songs and a jet-black sense of humour into something unmistakably theatrical. At its centre is Veronica Sawyer, smart, sharp and desperate to survive the brutal social politics of Westerberg High. When she is drawn into the orbit of the impossibly popular Heathers, her life changes overnight. Then comes J.D.: charismatic, dangerous and far more complicated than he first appears.
What begins as a savage satire of teenage hierarchy quickly becomes darker, stranger and more thrilling. Heathers is funny, often outrageously so, but beneath the colour, style and quotable one-liners is a show about pressure, cruelty, loneliness and the damage caused when people are pushed too far. That is why it has lasted. It does not simply trade on shock value or nostalgia. It understands how comedy and darkness can sit side by side, and how a story set in an American high school can speak to anyone who remembers how intense, absurd and unforgiving growing up can feel. The songs have become modern musical theatre favourites. Beautiful, Candy Store, Dead Girl Walking and Seventeen give the show its irresistible pulse: bold, funny, emotional and instantly recognisable to its army of fans.
Last time, demand was huge. This time is no different, with audiences booking early to make sure they don't miss out! Heathers is the sort of show people come to together, talk about afterwards, recommend quickly and remember vividly. For those who like their musicals polished but predictable, this may come as a shock. For everyone else, it is a glorious theatrical rush: stylish, sharp-edged, darkly comic and bursting with energy. Please don't assume there will be seats later. The popularity is real, the demand is growing, and this return visit is already shaping up to be one of the hottest tickets of the season! Heathers The Musical is at Blackpool Grand Theatre from Tuesday 27 to Saturday 31 October.
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BY TORBEN BETTS DIRECTED BY PHILIP FRANKS Presented by Original Theatre in association with Theatr Clwyd
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RUFUS HOUND. SUSIE BLAKE. ONE VERY DANGEROUS DINNER. A thriller can have the sharpest plot in the world but give it the right cast and suddenly it becomes unmissable.
That is the big reason The Other Side of Murder already feels like a book-now moment for Blackpool Grand Theatre. Arriving Tuesday 20 to Saturday 24 October, this new comedy thriller does not merely promise secrets, shocks and a final twist. It brings them to the stage with a cast built to make every raised eyebrow, awkward silence and explosive revelation count. At the top of that cast is Rufus Hound, one of the most versatile and quick-witted performers in British theatre and comedy. Audiences know him for his razor-sharp humour, but his stage career carries real weight, from the National Theatre’s smash-hit One Man, Two Guvnors to The Wind in the Willows. He has the rare gift a thriller like these needs: the ability to make a room laugh while keeping the audience alert to the danger underneath. Then there is the return of Susie Blake, and that alone is worth circling in the diary. A genuine national treasure, Blake is beloved for her work with Victoria Wood, her unforgettable screen presence and her role in Coronation Street. She brings the kind of comic precision and theatrical authority that can transform a line, sharpen a pause and make an audience feel they are in the safest hands just as the story becomes anything but safe.
Together, Hound and Blake give The Other Side of Murder its irresistible pull. This is the kind of pairing that makes audiences book early, not because they have been told to, but because they know they are going to want to say they saw it. Into the room come a pregnant lover, a Gilbert and Sullivan-obsessed mother-in-law, ghostly visitations and the kind of family revelations that do not sit politely until dessert. Dinner burns. Tempers flare. The supernatural starts to feel uncomfortably close. And somewhere between the laughter and the unease, the question begins to shift: who is performing, who is hiding something, and who has most to fear?
And because this has only just been announced, now is the moment to get ahead of the rush.
The best seats always go first for a cast like this, especially when the show arrives with proven thriller pedigree and a post-Murder at Midnight appetite already in place. Book for the names. Stay for the twists. Leave arguing about who knew what, when. The Other Side of Murder is at Blackpool Grand Theatre from Tuesday 20 to Saturday 24 October.
Following the success of Murder at Midnight, this is exactly the kind of thriller Blackpool Grand audience’s relish: stylish, funny, slippery and full of reasons to lean forward. It offers the pleasure of trying to solve the puzzle while knowing the play may be quietly making a fool of you. It gives you comedy with a chill behind it, mystery with personality, and performers who can turn domestic chaos into theatrical electricity. The Other Side of Murder has exactly the ingredients to become one of the most entertaining nights of the autumn.
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THE UPBEAT BEATLES SUN 06 SEP 2026 LOVE HURTS SUN 13 SEP 2026
A BOY. A BATTLEFIELD.
THE OPERA BOYS WITH PAUL POTTS SUN 27 SEP 2026
The greatest storytellers do not simply tell us what happened...
THE SIMON & GARFUNKEL STORY MON 28 SEP 2026
They make us feel why it matters, and that is the extraordinary gift of Michael Morpurgo, the world-class author whose stories have helped generations understand courage, kindness, loss and the complicated truths of growing up.
WEST END DIVAS TUE 29 SEP 2026 JOHN BARROWMAN: MY LIFE IN MUSICALS WED 30 SEP 2026 K-POP LIVE FRI 02 OCT 2026 ANYTHING FOR LOVE SAT 03 OCT 2026 DREAMCOAT STARS SUN 11 OCT 2026 THE PHANTOMS – STARRING LEE MEAD SUN 25 OCT 2026
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Best known to many as the writer of War Horse, Morpurgo has a rare ability to take history out of the textbook and place it directly in the heart. Private Peaceful, coming to Blackpool Grand Theatre from Monday 01 to Wednesday 03 February, is among his most powerful creations. At its centre is Tommo Peaceful, a young soldier in the First World War, looking back across his life as the night moves towards dawn. He remembers home, family, first love, brotherhood and the fields of childhood before the world changed forever. Around him is the machinery of war, but inside him is still the boy who loved, hoped, feared and dreamed. That intimacy is what makes this such an incredible piece of theatre. Rather than overwhelming us with the scale of conflict, it draws us close enough to hear one voice clearly. Through Tommo, the vast tragedy of war becomes personal and immediate. He is not a symbol carved into stone, but a brother, a son, a friend; a young man whose future should have stretched far beyond the battlefield.
Adapted and directed by Simon Reade, this acclaimed production brings Morpurgo’s unforgettable novel to the stage with the tenderness and urgency it deserves. It is theatre that reaches across generations: powerful enough for adults, accessible enough for young audiences, and important enough for families and schools to experience together. Morpurgo’s story endures because it never lectures. It listens. It sits beside one young soldier in the darkness and lets his memories do what only great storytelling can do: make the past feel present, make one life feel immeasurable, and make silence feel full of meaning. When dawn comes, you will not forget Tommo Peaceful. Private Peaceful is at Blackpool Grand Theatre from Monday 01 to Wednesday 03 February.
"The Best Pub in the World" IS OPENING AT THE GRAND
You know the shows people recommend with a slightly annoying amount of enthusiasm? Where they say, “Honestly, just go,” and refuse to explain much more because they do not want to spoil it? The Choir of Man is just that! Coming to Blackpool Grand Theatre from Tuesday 17 to Saturday 21 November, this Olivier Award-nominated, West End smash hit has built its reputation on being less like a conventional musical and more like the best night out you accidentally wish every night out could be. The setting is beautiful: a pub. Not a gloomy one with sticky carpets and a television nobody asked for, but the pub of dreams. A place where the music is brilliant, the company is generous, the stories get better as the evening goes on, and everyone feels as though they have somehow been invited into the same celebration.
On stage are nine astonishing performers: singers, musicians, storytellers and instrumentalists who create everything live. They do not hide behind the usual rules of theatre. They welcome the audience in, build the evening around them, and turn the room into something warmer, louder and more ALIVE! The soundtrack does a lot of the heavy lifting, and what a soundtrack it is. Expect songs made famous by Queen, Luther Vandross, Sia, Paul Simon, Adele, Guns N’ Roses, Avicii and Katy Perry - the kind of music that already belongs to car journeys, weddings, kitchens, break-ups, birthdays and big nights out. But The Choir of Man is not just a playlist with charm. Its brilliance lies in how those songs are used. Before long, the show stops feeling like something happening in front of you and starts feeling like something very special.
The pub, after all, has never really been about the drink, it's about belonging. It's where people laugh too loudly, tell the truth by accident, remember people they miss, and sing songs as if the chorus might fix everything for three minutes. For Blackpool, a town that understands entertainment, warmth and a proper night out, The Choir of Man feels like a perfect match. It's funny, foot-stomping, big-hearted and unexpectedly moving. Bring the friend who loves musicals. Bring the one who thinks they don't. They may both leave saying the same thing: “Honestly, just go!” The Choir of Man is at Blackpool Grand Theatre from Tuesday 17 to Saturday 21 November.
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AFairytaleFound Its...
Cinderella has been to plenty of balls. But she has never had an entrance quite like this! This September, Surinderella bursts into Blackpool Grand Theatre from Tuesday 22 to Saturday 26 September, bringing with it a riot of colour, comedy, romance, dance and full-throttle family fun. Think Cinderella with a South Asian sparkle, Bollywood swagger, panto mischief and enough shaadi drama to keep the whole family talking all the way home. In other words: this is not the fairytale quietly waiting in the corner. This is the fairytale on the dancefloor. Presented by Rifco Theatre Company in association with Belgrade Theatre Coventry and Imagine Theatre, Surinderella makes Bollywood’s dazzling debut at Blackpool Grand Theatre, and that alone should be enough to get tickets moving. BIG costumes. BIG laughs. BIG emotions. BIG auntie energy. This is the kind of show that knows exactly how to fill a stage and a family trip out. If you are looking for something joyful, colourful and different to do together, this is it. The story whisks us to The Bolly-woods, where the naach is non-stop, the romance is straight out of a filmi blockbuster, and the household drama is bigger than your most opinionated relatives at a wedding buffet. At its heart is
Surinder, sweet, strong and trapped under a mountain of chores thanks to her selfieobsessed, Insta-vlogging stepsisters Lovely and Bubbly. Her only real support? Basanti, a cow with more attitude than most divas and, frankly, every right to have it. Meanwhile, Prince Kavi is dealing with the kind of family pressure many will recognise instantly: marriage talk, expectation, royal responsibility and the looming question of who exactly he is meant to become. When he accidentally bumps into Surinder, sparks fly faster than a Bollywood dance sequence, and suddenly the old fairytale starts to shimmer with a brand-new rhythm. Then comes the fabulous Devi Godmother, arriving in full glam mode with magic, makeovers and masala moves. Add a dazzling Bollywood Ball, a mystical slipper and a whole lot of bakwas, and Surinderella becomes exactly what family theatre should be: bright enough for children, cheeky enough for grown-ups and generous enough for everyone to feel included. Rifco knows exactly how to make theatre that welcomes people in. Led by Pravesh Kumar MBE, the company is one of the UK’s most successful touring theatre companies, known for creating vibrant, accessible and ambitious new plays and musicals that celebrate British South Asian experiences. With Surinderella, that mission meets pure entertainment: a story full of identity, family, love and laughter, wrapped in
costumes, choreography and theatrical sparkle. Director Ameet Chana has promised that, after the “madness and love” the show received in 2025, Surinderella is back for an extended tour with original cast members returning, brand-new visual treats for the whole family, and the “Desi panto magic” cranked up to eleven. That is not just a line. It is a warning. This show is coming in hot! Bollywood is famous for heightened emotion, dazzling song and dance, vivid costumes and storytelling that blends romance, comedy, drama and spectacle without apology. Blackpool is famous for entertainment, lights, showmanship and knowing when a night out should feel like an event. Surinderella brings those worlds together in a way that feels made for The Grand. Tickets start from just £15, which makes this one of the most tempting family treats in the autumn diary. So, book before midnight. Book before the best seats disappear! Surinderella is at Blackpool Grand Theatre from Tuesday 22 to Saturday 26 September.
“A THOROUGHLY ENTERTAINING PRODUCTION THAT CAN BE ENJOYED BY THE WHOLE FAMILY.”
“THE SHOW OFFERS A DELIGHTFULLY FRESH, ALL-SINGING, ALL-DANCING TAKE ON THE MUCH-LOVED FAIRYTALE OF CINDERELLA.”
Midlands Rainbow
What’s On Live
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FAMILY FAVOURITES AT THE GRAND
The Tiger Who Came To Tea Tue 14 & Wed 15 Jul 2026
Peppa Pig’s Big Family Show Tue 01 & Wed 02 Sep 2026
K-Pop Live Fri 02 Oct 2026
Horrible Histories: Terrible Tudors & Awful Egyptians Thu 15 to Sun 18 Oct 2026
Dear Zoo Live! Tue 10 Nov & Wed 11 Nov 2026
Jack and the Beanstalk 2026/27 Fri 04 Dec 2026 to Sun 03 Jan 2027
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Wed 24 to Sat 27 Mar 2027027
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Coffee Mornings brought to you by....
17 Sep
Cheryl Fergison
Held at 10.30am in The Space at Blackpool Grand Theatre (entry from 10.15am) via Matcham Court. Tickets £5 on the door. 16 Jul – Captain Neil Airey, My Three and a Half Years with the Sultan of Brunei 17 Sep – Cheryl Fergison, Star of Stage and TV 20 Aug, 15 Oct, 19 Nov, Speakers to be confirmed.
HERITAGE TOURS AND AFTERNOON TEAS...
Grand Opulence Tour
Thu 16 Jul
Afternoon Tea (No Tour)
Sun 25 Jul
Afternoon Tea (No Tour
Fri 30 Jul
Afternoon Tea (No Tour)
Wed 05 to Fri 08 Aug
Heritage Tour & Afternoon Tea (1pm only)
Sun 30 Aug
Grand Opulence Tour
Wed 07 Oct
Backstage Secrets
Thu 12 Nov
Grand Opulence Tour
Mon 14 Dec
Grand Opulence & Backstage Secrets
Sun 17 Jan 2027
Valentine Heritage Tour & Afternoon Tea
Sun 14 Feb 2027
Mother’s Day Heritage Tour & Afternoon Tea
Sun 07 Mar 2027
HERITAGE COLLECTION At Blackpool Grand Theatre, every detail tells a story – from Frank Matcham’s iconic vision to the magic created on our stage. Our beautiful new Heritage Merchandise Collection brings those stories together in an exclusive illustrated design, celebrating the theatre through the ages. Featuring intricate plasterwork, glowing stained-glass windows, legendary dames, dazzling dancers and more, each piece captures the character, craftsmanship and history of The Grand.
Thoughtfully designed and made to be treasured, the collection includes elegant glass water bottles, hardback notebooks, refined notecard packs, and striking art prints (A5 and A3). Perfect as a gift or a keepsake, every item is a meaningful celebration of this much-loved theatre.
Visit our shop: wwwblackpoolgrand.co.uk/shop
Grand Theatre Blackpool, 33 Church Street, Blackpool, FY1 1HT | Box Office t. 01253 290190 | e. box@blackpoolgrand.co.uk INFORMATION CORRECT AT TIME OF GOING TO PRESS AND OFFERS MAY ONLY BE VALID AT SELECTED TIMES. ALL TICKETS SUBJECT TO AVAILABILITY. SOME SHOWS HAVE AGE GUIDANCE. © Blackpool Grand Theatre (Arts & Entertainments) Ltd. Registered number (England and Wales) 2825229. Registered Charity No. 1022754.