The National Theatre today announces casting news for its highly anticipated national tour of Dear England.  Leading the cast in ‘the decade’s biggest theatrical triumph’ (★★★★ Daily Telegraph) will be David Sturzaker as England manager Gareth Southgate, with East Enders and Mount Pleasant actress Samantha Womack playing the role of team psychologist Pippa Grange.  Football and non-football fans alike will be brought to their feet for this inspiring, at times heartbreaking, and ultimately uplifting story of Gareth Southgate’s revolutionary tenure as England manager.

The Olivier Award-winning Best New Play, which broke box office records during its West End run in 2023, will tour to 16 venues across England from 15 September 2025 until 14 March 2026 in a co-production with Josh Andrews and Stuart Galbraith for JAS Theatricals.

Dear England is written by the multi-award-winning stage and screen writer, James Graham (Punch, West End; Sherwood, BBC One), directed by the Almeida Theatre’s Artistic Director Rupert Goold (Patriots, Ink; Almeida Theatre/West End/Broadway) with set design by Es Devlin (Beyonce’s Renaissance, World Tour; The Lehman Trilogy, National Theatre).

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Following a hugely successful first year, the Surrey Musical Theatre Development Programme is back – and applications are now open for 2025.

Last year’s programme saw original songs performed for HRH Prince Edward during his Royal Visit to Woking, featured in Janie Dee’s Beautiful World cabaret, and culminated in Sing a Song of Surrey, a dazzling showcase at the Rhoda McGaw Theatre – starring a stellar West End cast and hosted by Woking native and renowned lexicographer Susie Dent.

This unique, producer-led initiative is designed to support the development of new musical theatre writing talent in Surrey. Run in partnership between The Ambassadors Woking and Write Me A Song Ltd, and supported by ATG Entertainment, the programme is free to participate in and provides an exciting platform for Surrey-based composers, lyricists, songwriters, and playwrights.

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HollyShorts Film Festival Celebrates 21 Years With Star Studded Lineup Including Stephen Fry, the Late Michael Madsen, Lena Waithe, Stormzy, Idris Elba, Slick Rick, Kit Harington, Chris Pine, Letitia Wright, Snoop Dog, Viola Davis and Chloe Sevigny 

The HollyShorts Film Festival returns this summer for its 21st edition, continuing its legacy as one of the world’s premier showcases for short-form cinema. Taking place from August 7–17, 2025, at the iconic TCL Chinese Theatres in Los Angeles—and streaming globally via Bitpix—this milestone year will feature a star-powered and diverse lineup, chosen from a record 7000 submissions worldwide.

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Last night, 14-time GRAMMY, Oscar and Emmy Award winner Lady Gaga kicked off her highly anticipated The MAYHEM Ball Tour at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Opening night of the sold-out tour featured a powerful setlist blending hits from her critically acclaimed album MAYHEM with fan favorites that span her expansive catalog.   Highlights from the show include Abracadabra, Killah, Vanish Into You, How Bad Do You Want Me, Love Drug, Summerboy, Just Dance, Judas, Born This Way, Shallow, Die With a Smile and more.  Produced by Lady Gaga and Michael Polansky via their company Morningview, The MAYHEM Ball expands on the visual and conceptual world Gaga introduced at Coachella and evolved throughout her festival run.  Continuing her collaboration with acclaimed choreographer Parris Goebel, she enlisted Ben Dalgleish of Human Person as show director. The production also features brand new costumes, styled by Hunter Clem and Gaga’s sister Natali Germanotta, under her design house Topo Studio.

Earning rave reviews from critics, Rolling Stone highlighted Gaga’s creative evolution, writing that she “didn’t just revisit [Coachella]—she expanded it, sharpened it, sprinkled in some nostalgia, and fully realized the gothic dream she had only just introduced.” Variety called the show a “breathless, finely-tuned spectacular,” and “a welcome reminder of her many, many talents.” Billboard hailed the night as “a theatrical, electric and delicious live affair,” emphasising the charged performances of MAYHEM’s standout tracks and past dancefloor staples. USA Today noted that Gaga “was singing like the powerhouse that has earned her 14 Grammys” and “smoldering with the chameleonic intensity that has secured her respect as an actress,” with every movement “choreographed to perfection.”

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The widely praised music industry mental health manual Touring and Mental Health; The Music Industry Manual edited by psychotherapist Tamsin Embleton will be released as an audiobook this September. Following the paperback publication of the book by the leading UK music book imprint Omnibus in 2023, the new audiobook will be released with an array of special new features including an epigraph by Nick Cave and meditation exercises by Rob Da Bank. The audiobook will also be narrated by the actor and voiceover artist Laura Howard (Midsomer Murders) and directed by Jeremy Hindmarsh (Swervedriver) and Peter Morris (Soho Voices). Music by Edward Butler.

The audiobook makes this essential resource significantly more accessible, especially for those who are neurodiverse, time-poor, or too stressed to sit and read a 600+ page manual. Now touring artists can access the manual anywhere, whether in a bunk, walking around the venue or on long drives.

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Prepare to discover heretofore unknown dimensions of Queens of the Stone Age on The Catacombs Tour – a limited series of very special one-night-only evenings. The shows will take place this October in a curated selection of venues throughout Europe, culminating at the Royal Albert Hall in London.

Tickets go on general sale on Friday 18th July 8am at QOTSA.com.

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Courtesy of Manuel Harlan.

There are few monumental events that can bring long lost relatives together, a wedding – typically a joyous occasion full of laugher, tears and everything in between. Memorable moments and revelations factors observed in Beth Steel‘s hearty drama Till the Stars Come Down currently playing at the Theatre Royal Haymarket.

Meandering between the confrontational and the comical, Steel crafts an honest encounter. Plus ones to the party – we observe the familial spats behind the scenes as Sylvia (Sinéad Matthews) the bride gets ready for her wedding day and her siblings Maggie (Aisling Loftus) and Leanne (Ruby Thompson) bold forces brought back together to celebrate their sister’s nuptials. Although the day revolves around Sylvia and Marek (Julian Kostov) her husband to be, the day really is a reflection on the family as a whole – the past, confronting the now and family dynamics elements integral to the day.

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On Sunday 13th July, we’ll be celebrating 12 years as a publication. Starting Theatre Full Stop in 2013, I was personally inspired to explore our contemporary, new writing landscape, especially post my East 15 training where we were guided to create new work reflective of the world around us, exploring socio-political issues seldom explored. As a publication, we’re intrigued by the stories that shape where we are now and how best to move forward from lessons learned.

What I couldn’t have imagined is the new path we’ve found ourselves on, especially post Covid whereby mental health became a priority and a topic I’m sure will become integral in our post Covid era. We’re 2 years into our well-being strand, an initiative started on our 10th birthday back in 2023 to help support with what currently is a very precarious time.

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Today, Blood Orange — aka Dev Hynes — announces a headline tour spanning Europe, Canada, and the US, with special shows in London featuring an intimate in the round production. For these unique dates, the artist will perform in the middle of the venue, allowing fans to enjoy an immersive experience with a 360-degree view. Artist presale begins tomorrow, July 9 at 10 AM local time, with other venue/ticket presales beginning July 10 at 10 AM local time. Tickets will be available for the general public on July 11 at 10 AM local time. Purchase tickets and stay updated on future Blood Orange shows HERE.

This September, Blood Orange kicks off an action-packed fall with a Portola Music Festival set, before joining hardcore-collaborator Turnstile in cities like Richmond and Columbus, and later accompanying Lorde for arena shows that take him to iconic venues like the Red Rocks Amphitheatre and Los Angeles’s Kia Forum. See below for full routing.

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