Carmel ThomasonAny kid of the 1980s will have a story to tell about their response to ‘The Karate Kid’. It was the ultimate underdog hero movie capturing the same spirit Stallone brought to adults with Rocky. We remember the music too. Joe Esposito’s uplifting...
The story of how white van man, Dave Fishwick took on the banking establishment to become the people’s champion has become the stuff of legend. The Burnley businessman’s quest to open the first high street bank in 150 years has already been told as...
Steve Timms‘There may be trouble ahead.’ In difficult times, people look for an exit. That was the case when the original RKO movie ‘Top Hat’, with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, arrived in 1936 at the height of the Great Depression. Arguably...
Leslie James KerwinA ‘miracle’ to some, a ‘gangster’ to others, the grown-ups around Matilda Wormwood can all agree on one thing: this is a five-year-old far too smart for her own good. Now on its 15th year of touring, Dennis Kelly and Tim Minchin’s ‘Matilda: The...
There’s a true sense of the hero returns as Operation Mincemeat opens its first ever world tour at Lowry’s Lyric Theatre. Now a West End and Broadway hit with numerous awards, it is hard to imagine the musical’s humble beginnings in front of an...
My first ever stadium gig as a child was watching the late Tina Turner at Gateshead International Stadium in 1990. It was billed as a farewell tour – which of course it wasn’t. Much to the delight of her fans, this born performer was back at the...
Cathy CrabbA camp old time was had of it at the Opera House with Top Hat. A flighty on its shoes show with classic Irving Berlin songs and a stellar cast of triple threats. Jerry Travers (Phillip Attmore), a Broadway sensation, helps an old boy out by coming...
Tickets for the upcoming run of Miss Saigon at the Palace Theatre, Manchester (4-8 August 2026) went on sale today, Friday 14 November 2025, following the stunning success of the current tour. If you intend to go, hurry up and get a ticket...
Returning to the Here & Now musical for the UK and Ireland tour, Rebecca Lock promises that audiences are in for a theatrical treat. “They can expect a rollercoaster of emotion,” she says, “and it’s so joyful, colourful...
A new musical is waiting to sweep you off your feet Bollywood style at the Opera House this week as the venue hosts the UK premiere of Come Fall in Love: the DDLJ Musical. For those who don’t know what DDLJ stands for, it is short for the 1995 Hindi...