Tim and Jeremy Vine and More Join WILKO: LOVE AND DEATH AND ROCK AND ROLL as Special Guests

A host of new names from comedy, TV and music have been confirmed to take to the stage as guest stars of Wilko: Love and Death and Rock and Roll when the show opens at the Leicester Square Theatre on 3rd July.  Comedian Tim Vine, his brother BBC Radio 2 and Channel 5 presenter Jeremy Vine and Channel 4 news anchor Krishnan Guru-Murthy are the latest names to join the line-up alongside music legends singer-songwriter Billy Bragg, Squeeze’s Chris Difford, and poet John Cooper Clarke. All special guests will perform in the show’s encore on selected nights in this biographical production, which features live music and pays tribute to the extraordinary life and legacy of music icon Wilko Johnson

The rock and roll icons already announced to perform are: Bob Geldof (Boomtown Rats), Norman Watt-Roy (Ian Dury and the Blockheads, Wilko Johnson band), Steve “West” Weston (The Roger Daltrey band), Dennis Greaves and Mark Feltham (Nine Below Zero), Ben Harding (Senseless Things, Three Colours Red, Thee Faction), singer songwriters John Otway and Wreckless Eric, actor Kevin Eldon (Big Train) and Wilko’s son Simon Johnson (Eight Rounds Rapid). Sid Griffin of the Long Ryders will perform in two shows where he will be playing the harmonicas left to him by Dr. Feelgood’s late frontman Lee Brilleaux and cult rockabilly guitarist James Oliver will also play two shows.

Billy Bragg said, ‘Wilko was one of the most animated stage performers you've ever seen and had an incredible guitar playing style.  He's the seed from which so much has grown. Seeing him perform for the first time in the 70s was one of those moments, like the first-time people heard Bill Haley play Rock Around the Clock. I’m thrilled to be honouring his legacy in the West End.’ 

Writer Jonathan Maitland said “We wanted to keep it interesting, and Krishnan and Jeremy are our wild cards. Krishnan, apart from being a more than decent guitarist, is a huge Wilko and Dr. Feelgood fan, as is Jeremy, who is quite a tasty drummer. Indeed I saw Tim and Jeremy Vine’s extraordinary post-punk-cum-pop band “The Flared Generation” in North Cheam, back in 1983. These days however, like their fellow musical siblings the Gallaghers, it’s a challenge getting them on stage together even though they love each other dearly.  But, just like Liam and Noel, they can also both cut it solo. In fact Jeremy may even be a better drummer than Noel. And Tim is definitely funnier than Liam.”

In 2012, Wilko Johnson was given 12 months to live. Refusing treatment, he decided to make the most of his time left by seeing the people, places and things that shaped his extraordinary life. Then a miracle happened. From his days as a punk pioneer to Game of Thrones, the play weaves live music, storytelling and Wilko’s own words to explore what it means to be alive. This year is the 50th anniversary of Dr Feelgood’ s seminal Down by the Jetty album, a key influence on Paul Weller, the Ramones, the Sex Pistols, Blondie, Patti Smith, Frank Ferdinand and The Clash. 

Wilko: Love and Death and Rock and Roll originated at Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch in 2024 and transferred to the Southwark Playhouse earlier this year for its London premiere. The show is produced by Jetty Productions Ltd in Association with Canvey Rock and Cahoots Theatre Company and is written by Jonathan Maitland’s (The Interview, An Audience With Jimmy Saville). The cast is made up of Georgina Fairbanks, Georgina Field, Jon House, David John and Johnson Willis as Wilko. A substantial portion of the profits from the run will be donated to the Teenage Cancer Trust which was one of Wilko’s chosen charities while he was alive.