Blackpool Grand Theatre launches a packed season of drama, musicals and comedy

Blackpool's Grand Theatre is one of the great playhouses of the North West, and each year its season launch is a chance for the town to see what lies ahead on its stage. The 2025 launch event, held in February, showed a theatre in confident form.

The programme covered a wide range of tastes. Announcements included the political comedy Handbagged, the classic thriller An Inspector Calls and the much-loved Shirley Valentine, alongside many more productions spread across the year.

Comedy and music featured strongly too. New shows announced at the launch included the comedian Josh Widdicombe and the singer Matt Goss, giving audiences plenty of reasons to return beyond the theatre's drama programme, and broadening the Grand's appeal to people who might not usually book a play.

The Grand also took on a starring role in making theatre. It co-produced Grease the Musical with Pitlochry Festival Theatre in Scotland, a partnership that brought a fresh production of the hit show to audiences in both places.

Young performers were given a big opportunity as well. The theatre brought back its professionally produced Summer Youth Musical, staging The Wind in the Willows with local performers aged nine to 19. Projects like this help nurture the next generation of talent in the town.

The theatre also welcomed touring musicals, with Dear Evan Hansen among the productions scheduled to visit Blackpool in 2025, giving local audiences the chance to see acclaimed shows without travelling to the big cities.

And then there is the pantomime. At the season launch, chief executive Adam Knight spoke of yet another record-breaking pantomime at The Grand, a reminder of how much the festive show means to families across the Fylde coast. For many local children, a trip to the Grand panto is their very first experience of live theatre, and for plenty of grown-ups it remains a cherished Christmas tradition.

Full listings and tickets are available on the Blackpool Grand Theatre website. Whether you fancy a classic play, a big musical or an evening of comedy, it is well worth looking at what is coming up next.