It’s curtain up on a new government and yesterday a Starlight Express cast member, in collaboration with Society of London Theatre and UK Theatre, rolled down to Westminster to set out the conditions that will enable theatre to thrive.

You can watch the video here: https://x.com/SOLTnews/status/1810667091999219963

Skating past Downing Street, the Treasury and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on behalf of our sector, Harrison Peterkin, who plays Lumber in the acclaimed musical now playing at Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre, took time out from performing eight shows a week to choreograph this special delivery.

Society of London Theatre & UK Theatre’s letter to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer MP, outlines what’s needed for British theatre to survive and thrive, and how we work in partnership to help his Government promote growth and kick down barriers to opportunity:

Dear Prime Minister,

The power of theatre to promote growth and break down barriers to opportunity 

On behalf of the Society of London Theatre & UK Theatre congratulations on your electoral victory. We are the membership organisations for theatre producers, managers, owners, and operators in London and across the UK. As you will know some of our member venues – including Donmar Warehouse and Gillian Lynne Theatre – are in your own constituency.

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This weekend, thousands of people flocked to London’s Gunnersbury Park for DLT’s The Recipe Festival, a day filled with unforgettable moments. DLT’s dedication to crafting exceptional experiences was evident throughout the event, ensuring every detail contributed to a perfect day out.

From enjoying the fun fair rides and watching The Receipts Podcast live to having a blast at the ASOS Beach Club, receiving freebies from Treasure Tress’, and getting your dancehall fix at the Wray and Nephew tent, the day was a sensory delight.

Attendees indulged in a variety of foods from vendors like Jollof Mama, Cecconi’s Pizza Bar, Crosstown, JRK Bros and more, with VIP also having the pleasure of experiencing table service with unlimited food provided by Tatale and Chef Dom Taylor

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Tonight, Irish Celtic-infused pop icons, The Corrs announce that they will perform at London’s The O2 as part of the band’s UK & Ireland tour Talk On Corners which is hitting arenas later this year in November 2024.

All UK & Ireland tour dates will take place throughout November with stops in Belfast, Manchester, Glasgow, Newcastle and will now end with a special headline performance at London’s The O2. Joining them will be Aussie pop royalty Natalie Imbruglia. Full listing below.

Presales for The O2 show date will start Wednesday 10 July at 10am local time with general on-sale following on Friday 12 July at 10am local time. Tickets for all other UK & Ireland dates are currently on sale and available via LiveNation.co.uk.

The tour news follows the band’s epic performance at BST Hyde Park in London this evening (Sunday 7 July) which gave fans a taste of what’s to come from the UK & Ireland tour with a setlist of greatest hits – including Runaway, What Can I Do? and Breathless – and a chance to see the 90s pop legends once more!

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Following a wild, triumphant week that saw the release of their brand new studio album Happenings, a truly euphoric secret set at Glastonbury’s Woodsies Stage, and a celebratory hometown headliner at Leicester’s Victoria Park this Saturday, today sees yet another installment of the band’s incredible run as Kasabian, consisting of Serge Pizzorno, bassist Chris Edwards, drummer Ian Matthews and guitarist Tim Carter announce four huge November UK arena shows with special guests The Streets.

The four shows will see them visit Birmingham, Glasgow, Manchester and London’s O2 Arena. Pre Sale tickets are available HERE, with general sale tickets from Wednesday, 10th July @ 9.30am. See full dates below.

It’s been a truly welcome return with Happenings being praised across the board, with The Guardian making it their Album Of The Week, alongside a string of great reviews and a stellar performance of ‘Algorithm’s on The One Show.
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Today, following her electrifying headlining performance at Glastonbury, 3x GRAMMY and 7x BRIT Award-winning global pop powerhouse Dua Lipa announced she will perform at London’s legendary Wembley Stadium next summer on 20^th June 2025. Tickets will go on sale to the public here from 10am BST Friday 12^th July.

“There couldn’t be a better time to share this with you all! I am still flying high from the magic of headlining the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury this weekend, and I am absolutely thrilled to announce I’ll be playing Wembley Stadium this time next year.”

To celebrate the announcement, Dua and O2 have collaborated in bringing back O2’s iconic “Walk Ad” campaign to promote their exclusive presale for the Radical Optimism Tour at Wembley Stadium. Filmed by acclaimed UK director Daniel Wolfe and shot on location in Broadstairs and Margate in Kent, the beautiful 60 second film follows Dua and her dancers from a quintessential British beach to the stage for her 2025 tour. O2 customers can get early access to tickets via the Priority app from 10am BST Wednesday, July 10th, 48 hours before general release.

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Pop icon Anastacia has today announced a huge European tour for 2025, introducing the Not That Kind tour. The mammoth tour marks 25 years since Anastacia’s debut studio album which was released in 2000. Anastacia first broke through in Europe with smash hit I’m Outta Love which featured on the album, and the star has continued to have global success ever since. The tour will see the biggest voice in pop visit Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Poland, Ireland, The Netherlands, France, Belgium, Ireland and the UK. Tickets go on general sale Friday 5^th July at 10am via LiveNation.co.uk. More information on tickets can be found here: https://www.anastacia.com/live

Speaking of the tour, Anastacia says, “I am beyond excited to be on the road again in Europe and blessed to get to come and perform in so many gorgeous places to my very special family. I didn’t get to do a tour for my first album which makes this all the more special. I can’t believe it’s been 25 years since ‘Not ThatKind’, we will be sure to celebrate in true Anastacia style. It’ll be one big anniversary party. I can’t wait to see you all there!”
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Larger than life, postmodern, explosive, and chaotic, Daniel York Loh subverts the notion of the typical British Chinese experience in his latest play which premiered in London last week. The last time I felt such awe and excitement about the possibilities of theatre was when I saw Daniel’s last play at the Arcola Theatre, FORGOTTEN 遗忘 (2018).

Initially, one might wonder what more there is to say about identity politics. I myself thought this as we were forced multiple times to listen to all manner of racist slurs that are specifically directed to East and Southeast Asians. I thought to myself, do we really need to cover the same ground again and again? Can we not put our traumas to bed? But then I am rudely reminded on my Instagram feed where news broke yesterday that we live in a world where the Metropolitan Police are able to arrest multiple South Asian individuals for calling other South Asians a “coconut,” the subject clearly remains painfully relevant. So, this is the question the play is asking, what does it mean to be Chinese? And what does Dao mean? There is no straight forward answer to either.

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