John Partridge News

TOP television presenter Stephen Mulhern is the star of Dick Whittington, this year's Marlowe Theatre pantomime.

Full casting has been announced for the international award-winning musical CHICAGO, which opens a national tour at the New Theatre Oxford on Friday 12 February 2016. Joining the previously announced John Partridge as Billy Flynn, Hayley Tamaddon as Roxie Hart and Sam Bailey as Mama Morton will be Sophie Carmen-Jones as Velma Kelly, Neil Ditt as Amos Hart and A.D. Richardson as Mary Sunshine. Tour schedule below with further dates to be announced. www.chicagotour.co.uk

"Murder, greed, corruption, exploitation, adultery and treachery… all those things we hold near and dear to our hearts"… so begins the international award-winning musical CHICAGO, which opens a national tour at the New Theatre Oxford on Friday 12 February 2016 starring John Partridge as Billy Flynn, Hayley Tamaddon as Roxie Hart and Sam Bailey as Mama Morton. Tour schedule below with further dates to be announced. Full casting to be announced soon. www.chicagotour.co.uk

Tony Maudsley (ITV1's Benidorm) will play Edna Turnblad when Hairspray returns to Edinburgh next year. He will be joined by TV and stage actress and presenter Claire Sweeney (Educating Rita, Guys and Dolls) as Velma Von Tussle, Olivier Award nominated actor and much-loved Blue Peter presenter Peter Duncan (BBC1 Tumble) as Wilbur Turnblad and British singer and West End performer Brenda Edwards (Chicago, We Will Rock You, The X Factor) as Motormouth Maybelle. Freya Sutton will reprise the role of Tracy Turnblad alongside established musical theatre performer Jon Tsouras (A Chorus Line) who will play the role of Corny Collins. Dex Lee (The Scottsboro Boys) will play Seaweed, Ashley Gilmour (Miss Saigon) will play Link Larkin, Lauren Stroud (Wicked) will play Amber, Monique Young (Top Hat) will play Penny, Karis Jack (Urinetown) will play Little Inez, Adam Price (Hairspray) will play Male Authority Figure, Tracey Penn (Made in Dagenham) will play Female Authority Figure and Layton Williams (Bad Education, Billy Elliot) will play Duane. Further casting will be announced in due course.

Stars of theatre and screen take to the stage next month for this year's gilt-edged line-up of Qdos Entertainment pantomimes, 24 of which will come to life across the UK this winter.

Danielle Hope's debut album Bring The Future Faster was recorded at 54 Below in New York and has recently been released by Broadway Records. Shooting to stardom following her triumph in BBC's Over The Rainbow and successively becoming the West End's Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, ever since her feet haven't touched the ground once. Hope went on to star as Eponine in Les Miserables, the Narrator in Joseph and his Technicolour Dreamcoat and is currently touring the UK as Maria in The Sound of Music - all massive roles to have portrayed by the age of 23! She enjoyed a superb debut concert in London's Delfont Room in June last year which led onto her American solo debut heard on this recording. 

Tony Maudsley (ITV1's Benidorm) will play Edna Turnblad in the major 40-week UK tour of Hairspray which will open at Curve theatre in Leicester this autumn. He will be joined by TV and stage actress and presenter Claire Sweeney (Educating Rita, Guys and Dolls) as Velma Von Tussle, Olivier Award nominated actor and much-loved Blue Peter presenter Peter Duncan (BBC1 Tumble) as Wilbur Turnblad and British singer and West End performer Brenda Edwards (Chicago, We Will Rock You, The X Factor) as Motormouth Maybelle. Freya Sutton will reprise the role of Tracy Turnblad alongside established musical theatre performer Jon Tsouras (A Chorus Line) who will play the role of Corny Collins. Dex Lee (The Scottsboro Boys) will play Seaweed, Ashley Gilmour (Miss Saigon) will play Link Larkin, Lauren Stroud (Wicked) will play Amber, Monique Young (Top Hat) will play Penny, Karis Jack (Urinetown) will play Little Inez, Adam Price (Hairspray) will play Male Authority Figure, Tracey Penn (Made in Dagenham) will play Female Authority Figure and Layton Williams (Bad Education, Billy Elliot) will play Duane. Further casting will be announced in due course.

Good morning, BroadwayWorld! Because we know all our readers eat, sleep and breathe Broadway, what could be better than waking up to it? Today's big news: CATS stalks into the West End, DYING FOR IT begins off-Broadway, and Sting appears in DON'T QUIT YOUR NIGHT JOB late tonight!

Not long now till CATS opens in the West End! Our second Throwback Thursday of the day is of John Partridge playing Rum Tum Tugger in the CATS movie!

Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats, the second longest-running Broadway musical (only surpassed by Lloyd Webber's own 'The Phantom of the Opera'), and fourth longest-running West End musical, returns in high definition and digital sound to GREAT PERFORMANCES where it had its 1998 world television premiere. The special encore presentation will air tonight, November 21 at 9 p.m. ET on PBS (check local listings) as part of the PBS Arts Fall Festival.

Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats, the second longest-running Broadway musical (only surpassed by Lloyd Webber's own 'The Phantom of the Opera'), and fourth longest-running West End musical, returns in high definition and digital sound to Great Performances where it had its 1998 world television premiere. The special encore presentation will air Friday, November 21 at 9 p.m. ET on PBS (check local listings) as part of the PBS Arts Fall Festival.

Johnny Partridge, who is best known for having played the role of Christian Clarke in EastEnders for the past five years and who last year celebrated 30 years in the business, is proud to announce his debut album 'Dames, Dudes + Cowboys Too' - released today, September 15th on Big Hand Recordings.

John Partridge first came to my attention in the wonderful Drowsy Chaperone back in 2007 although he had had a great two decades previous to this working in musical theatre. Since then his career has rocketed and he is now most commonly and fondly known as Christian Clarke from Eastenders. John has most recently been seen in the BBC's gymnastics reality show Tumble until he sadly bowed out last weekend. His next venture is the release of his debut album 'Dames, Dudes and Cowboys too' under the name of Johnny Partridge and I have had the pleasure of previewing it for BWW:UK.

Johnny Partridge, who is best known for having played the role of Christian Clarke in EastEnders for the past five years and who last year celebrated 30 years in the business, is proud to announce his debut album

Britain's biggest pantomime, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs at Birmingham Hippodrome, will complete its six and a half week runthis Sunday (2 Feb) having entertained over 115,000 theatregoers. And that figure makes it the best-selling Panto at the city's leading venue for over a decade.

This year Birmingham Hippodrome will present for the very first time a specially adapted and relaxed performance of Britain's biggest pantomime, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs on Thursday 30 January at 1pm.

Birmingham Hippodrome and Qdos Entertainment today announced a star-studded cast for the UK's biggest pantomime Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs opening today 19 December 2013 and running until Sunday 2 February 2014.

The UK editor-in-chief reflects on the ups and downs of West End theatre in 2013. So, another busy year in the West End - and a busy year for BWW:UK. I've been the editor-in-chief of BWW:UK for nearly five years now, working closely with our US newdesk (and dealing with that inconvenient time difference), and overseeing our ever-expanding reviewing squad (as well as our London writers, we also have a team at the Edinburgh Festival every year, and regional reviewers in cities around the UK including Glasgow, Birmingham, Sheffield and Bristol).

Birmingham Hippodrome has been selected to join this year's Big Give Christmas Challenge with a focus on raising money towards the theatre's first ever 'relaxed performance'.

Birmingham Hippodrome and Qdos Entertainment have launched the country's biggest pantomime Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, which opens on Thursday 19 December 2013 and runs until Sunday 2 February 2014.