At The Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham

 12th - 17th April 2027

FIRST CASTING ANNOUNCED FOR THE

WORLD STAGE PLAY PREMIERE

Seminal psychological thriller adapted for the stage by

celebrated playwright Gina Gionfriddo

from the multi-million-selling novel by Thomas Harris

Directed by Nikolai Foster

www.silenceofthelambsplay.com

Indigo Productions and Crossroads Live, in association with Curve, are delighted to announce first casting for the upcoming UK and Ireland tour of The Silence of the Lambs, ahead of the global cultural phenomenon’s world premiere play debut. The electrifying new production comes to Cheltenham's Everyman Theatre on 12^th - 17^th April 2027.

It is today revealed that British actor, singer, presenter, writer and director John Partridge, known for his long-running role as Christian Clarke in BBC 1’s EastEnders and extensive range of West End credits from CATS to Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, will don the iconic mask as the refined and sadistic Dr Hannibal Lecter.

When FBI trainee Clarice Starling is sent to interview the psychiatrist and infamous murderer Hannibal Lecter, it’s hoped his brilliant mind will help catch the sadistic new serial killer, Buffalo Bill. Another girl is missing, and time is running out. But Dr Lecter has questions of his own, and now Clarice must decide: keep a safe distance, or let Hannibal ‘The Cannibal’ into her head?

Acclaimed television writer and playwright Gina Gionfriddo (Law & Order (NBC), House of Cards (Netflix), Becky Shaw) brings Thomas Harris’s gripping literary masterpiece to the stage in a new modern adaptation directed by Curve’s Artistic Director, Nikolai Foster. Gionfriddo’s theatrical adaptation delves into the psychological tension of Thomas Harris’s landmark novel, drawing the audience deep into Clarice and Lecter’s intelligent, intricate, and bone-chilling game of cat-and-mouse, as the FBI scramble to catch Buffalo Bill, a serial killer still at large.

John Partridge says of his casting in the upcoming tour ‘’How often does an actor get to play a role that by simply saying the character’s name, it takes your breath away. It’s a huge honour, and I intend to savour every morsel of it!’’

Director Nikolai Foster adds: “Taking on a role like Hannibal Lecter requires real guts, tenacity and an appetite to confront the darkest depths of the human condition. Working with John on the role has been incredibly inspiring - his instincts are razor sharp - and there is no finer actor to bring to life Thomas Harris’s most chilling creation in our world premiere stage adaptation.”

At just 16, John Partridge left college to join the original UK tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s CATS, later transferring to the West End production at the New London Theatre to star as Rum Tum Tugger. He reprised the role in the official filmed version opposite Elaine Paige and John Mills.

John’s extensive West End, touring and international theatre credits include: Everybody’s Talking About Jamie (Peacock Theatre); A Chorus Line (London Palladium); The Drowsy Chaperone (Novello Theatre); Notre-Dame de Paris (Dominion Theatre); The Fix (Donmar Warehouse), directed by Sam Mendes; Tommy (Shaftesbury Theatre); Grease (Dominion Theatre); Starlight Express (Apollo Victoria Theatre); The Hunting of the Snark (Prince Edward Theatre); Taboo 20th Anniversary Concert (London Palladium); The Witches of Eastwick in Concert (Sondheim Theatre); The Chalk Garden (Theatre Royal Windsor & Yvonne Arnaud Theatre); The Doncastrian Chalk Circle (National Theatre & CAST Doncaster); The Emcee in Cabaret (Rufus Norris production, UK tour); The View Upstairs (Soho Theatre); Rough Crossing (UK tour); The Case of the Frightened Lady (UK tour); La Cage Aux Folles (UK tour); Chicago (UK tour); The Tempest (Northcott Theatre); Miss Saigon (UK tour); Rent (European tour); Black Goes With Everything (Churchill Theatre, Bromley); Marilyn in Boy George’s Taboo (The Venue); and most recently Billy Haynes in The Code (Southwark Playhouse Elephant).

On screen, John is widely known for his long-running role as Christian Clarke in EastEnders (BBC, 2007–2016). His screen work also includes Involuntary Activist (Iris Prize/BBC) and Cleopatra (Netflix).

A well-known television personality, John won Celebrity MasterChef (BBC) and has appeared on The Real Full Monty (ITV), Taking The Next Step (CBBC), Tumble (BBC) and Battlechefs with Marco Pierre White (Watch). He has also served as a celebrity judge on Over the Rainbow (BBC), guest-hosted The National Lottery Draws (BBC), and is a regular contributor on Jeremy Vine (Channel 5). 

Full creative team and further casting to be announced.

The Silence of the Lambs is produced by Indigo Productions and Crossroads Live in association with Curve.

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Tuesday night is theatre night and we were invited to the Everyman Cheltenham for Glorious! A Play about a singer, who could not sing! Starring Corrie's Wendi Peters, 

Dubbed ‘the worst singer in the world’, Glorious! is the true story of American socialite Florence Foster Jenkins, who was known for her flamboyant costumes, enigmatic performances and decidedly off-key voice.

Starring Wendi Peters (Coronation Street) as Florence Foster Jenkins and Matthew James Morrison (EastEnders), as Cosme McMoon, in this 20th anniversary production, this hilarious production played to rave reviews at Manchester’s Hope Mill Theatre and is the feel-good comedy we’ve been waiting for.

Where do I start? As we all know Wendi Peters, can really play any role, effortlessly, she was brilliant, portraying the worst Singer in the world, "Florence Foster Jenkins" she sung brilliantly "off-key" which is probably very difficult to do, when you are trained to sing in tune. Her comedic timing and comic lines, worked perfectly alongside Matthew James Morrison (EastEnders), who played Cosme McMoon. They worked effortlessly together on stage to portray this quite funny story. 

ON SALE NOW: MICHAEL MATHER – 365: HOME EDITION

He started here… and now he’s coming home.

Michael Mather returns to The Customs House for a one-night-only performance of 365: Home Edition – a powerful, deeply personal show told through music, spoken word and storytelling.

This is an honest, raw and moving journey — from growing up in South Shields, to chasing life in the big city, falling in love, losing his way to addiction… and ultimately finding recovery and choosing to live.

It’s bold. It’s vulnerable. And it’s not to be missed.

Fri 15 May – one night only! Tickets from £25 https://bit.ly/TCHMather365

Box Office: 0191 454 1234

Come and see a local lad’s story, told where it all began.

Starring Ralph Little as Alec Leamas in the The Spy Who Came In From The Cold, this play is strong, exciting, funny and dramatic, with incredible production throughout. The play runs for 2hrs 10 minutes (with interval) and there's lots to fit in to the short running time, but it is done seamlessly. Ralph Little's character is not only hilarious delivering some dark comedy for scenes, they also have strong acting presence on stage captivating the audience from the moment the house lights go down. 

The Spy Who Came In From The Cold is a riveting journey through the fog-shrouded terrain of Cold War espionage, deception, and moral compromise. 

The play has strong performances from everyone on stage, and the play is helped with a brilliant soundtrack which moves the story along nicely and the actors on stage have stage mics for the audience to really capture the dialogue that Ralph Little's characters develop. Without giving too much away from the play, Ralph's character is a spy who is ready to come in from the cold and finally settle, however there is one more mission that he has been given, with its twists and turns, does he finally come in from the cold? Will he achieve the mission whilst falling in love with a librarian who is likely to jeopardise everything that he has worked for. 

This play is incredible, I really enjoyed it from the start to finish, walking out being amazed of how it was all brought to life from a book, to a stage show in a touring capacity. I got to the end of the second act, and thought I could really watch this again and still enjoy it the second time around and I really don't often think this about plays. I usually find them either slightly too long, or not engaging enough. This was completely the opposite, It was engaging and drew you in from the moment it started. 

I really, really enjoyed it and it was so great to see Ralph Little on stage in this incredible role.

As always, a big thanks to Encore PR for the invite and the Cheltenham Everyman Theatre for the warm welcome.

Last night we were invited to Everyman Theatre to see the #Barnum Musical that plays until Saturday.

I thought somewhat the show maybe slightly overshadowed by the fact that Disney has launched The Greatest Showman and how well it’s been received in Bristol; however; that didn’t stop the audiences from booking tickets in Cheltenham with Lee Mead in the role as PT Barnum, who was born to play that role.

Lee’s performance was spectacular with his strong vocals and great story telling had the audience gripped in; with them leaving the auditorium wanting more.

For me, personally it was a good watch seeing how they tell the life of PT Barnum on stage in a different way to The Greatest Showman.

There was a few musical numbers that you wanted to be cut short as they felt too long and the gag had run its course, but apart from that the spectacular circus acts on stage made up for one or two questionable musical numbers.

I can easily see children and young adults or older adults wanting to try some of the circus acts (I would mention try this under strict supervision).  There's an incredible stunt in the first act, that Lee Mead does, which the entire audience goes silent for, in amazement of his achievement... only knows how he achieves it in front of an audience each night when the audience size numbers vary depending on venue. I won't spoil the act which is what he does, as its a great moment in the show and a reason to book tickets.

The show runs for 1hr 15 in the first act that feels slightly too long, but the second act runs for only 50 minutes which fits quite nicely, the story flows and the songs work seemly into each other.

Overall an enjoyable evening out and one with a great strong cast. If you can get tickets in Cheltenham you’ll be lucky as they are pretty much sold out or have single seats available.

Tickets via Everyman Theatre . https://www.everymantheatre.org.uk/shows/barnum/#tickets

#Invite with thanks to @encorepruk

Content Warning

This show includes smoke, haze, gunshots, fire, loud noise, flashing lights, darkness, latex balloons and clowns, and contains depictions of racism, slavery and the exploitation of children, animals and mermaids.

Performance Times are 2pm Matinees, Thursday & Saturdays, and Evenings at 19:30. Please note the finish time of the evening performance said 9.40pm. It's more like 9.50pm.

Happy Easter from Bradey & Mills

Single White Female is on at the Everyman Theatre in Cheltenham until Sat 21st March 2026.

Sharing a flat can be murder…

Based on the iconic 90’s psychological thriller, the world premiere stage production of Single White Female is a bold and modern reimagining of the best-selling book and hit movie, that coined a phrase and led a generation to fear a stiletto heel!

Staring the talented Kym Marsh and Lisa Faulkner, 

Allie (Lisa) is a recently divorced mum, balancing being a single parent with the launch of her tech start up. When she decides to advertise for a lodger to help make ends meet, the delightful Hedy (Kym Marsh) offers her a lifeline. But as their lives intertwine, boundaries blur, and a seemingly perfect arrangement begins to unravel.

The play is 2hrs 15 minutes long, which doesn't feel like enough time to tell a story so well, but it works out to be great length to tell the stories with twists and turns left resolved at the end of the play, leaving the audience member wanting a third act. The dark humour and drama is brilliant, works so well along with the sudden pyrotechnics in the once scene flat, showcases just why sharing a flat can be murder really well,  watch out for the dreaded window at the start and the quite relevant reference at the start which gives a major clue to the fantastic ending.

Overall the play is great, its got edge of your seat drama and some great music for scene changes to help the story along (albeit it some songs do go on for slightly longer than you would want). Overall Kym Marsh and Lisa Faulkner are brilliant in this play and is certainly one to watch.

As always, thanks to Cheltenham Everyman and Encore PR for the invite. 

Kym Marsh and Lisa Faulkner pictured above with an epic climax to a thrilling 2hrs of twists and unexpected turns. 

This is rated for audiences over the age of 15 years and older due to the themes.

The play contains depictions of violence, online bullying and scenes of a sexual nature.

On Monday 23rd February we were invited to Cheltenham Everyman Theatre to see the UK tour of The Bodyguard.

At this performance we had MIREIA MAMBO playing Nicki Marron who also covers Rachael Marron, I believe she covers a Matinee.

ADAM GARCIA and SIDONIE SMITH were our Rachel and Frank for this performance and let's say, it was nice to see this show after the last time it was in Cheltenham (a few years ago). The cast is lined up with some incredible talent from the dancers, to the musicians who are in the pit.

Yes, the iconic start, which starts with a sudden gun shot, still made James jump, and he was expecting it (well... I did warn him, but the blue air out of this mouth amused those around him...). 

The story, is fairly straightforward and if you've seen the movie, you'll know what has happened (shocker, I've never seen the film). 

We always love when these shows come to the Everyman as they work incredibly well on the smaller stage as it feels more compact and makes the dance routines and scenes come together better, better than if you were to see it on a bigger stage such as Bristol Hippodrome where there is such a bigger space to fill. 

A big shout out to JAMES-LEE HARRIS who plays the Stalker, who is incredibly convincing throughout, providing the right jump scene in the second half. (I won't give it away). 

Now, I don't usually do this, but MIREIA MAMBO who played Nicki had a very strong voice and actually in her numbers, gave me chills, from her outstanding performance on stage in the Everyman Cheltenham, I actually think her voice is slightly stronger than Sidonie Smith and would love to see her Rachel.

The energy in the room at the end of the performance was wonderful. it was so nice to see the audience and I giving the entire cast a standing ovation for its drowning in the audience and telling such a beautiful and heartfelt story on stage. But the heartache and sad ending was short lived when the entire cast had a boogie on the stage to help the audience to talk about the evening on the way out of the auditorium. 

Now, security were present in Cheltenham, but this is routine as if you saw the press back in 2023, you'd of known audience members got a little rowdy when the bodyguard hit Manchester and people were fighting and the show had to be abandoned because of it. No such thing as that tonight, instead it was well behaved audience members enjoying the final number together like it should be.  Overall a good 5 stars for its incredible performance and casting.

I would like to thank Encore PR and Everyman Cheltenham for the invite. We always look forward to coming to the theatre and reviewing the upcoming shows. 

The Shawshank Redemption was at Cheltenham Everyman last week (10th - 14th February) and we were invited to see it.

Despite protests of his innocence, Andy Dufresne is handed a double life sentence for the brutal murders of his wife and her lover. Incarcerated in the notorious Shawshank facility, he quickly learns that no one can survive alone.

Andy strikes up an unlikely friendship with the prison fixer Red, and things start to take a slight turn for the better. However, when Warden Stammas decides to bully Andy into subservience and exploit his talents for accountancy, a desperate plan is quietly hatched…

Based on Stephen King’s 1982 novella, this thrilling stage production examines friendship and hope behind the claustrophobic bars of a maximum-security facility. The 1994 feature film was nominated for seven Academy Awards.

BEN ONWUKWE boasts a 30 year stage career including leading roles with the RSC and the Royal Court, and eleven years on TV as Recall McKenzie in London’s Burning. - We had the chance to chat to Ben in regards to his role in the Play,  which you can listen to here: https://radiobath.com/ben-onwukwe-talks-the-shawshank-redemption-on-radio-bath/) 

The Play itself is very moving with some serious topics mentioned, but is narrated really well by Ben who helps guide the story through its stages and Bens right during the scene changes there is music to match the era and this is showcased by pre-show music before the performance starts. Overall, the show is really good for its drama and intense scenes. We really enjoyed it and speaking to Ben before the show over zoom was helpful to understand the narrative of the play.

I would certainly recommend booking a trip to see this iconic story brought to life on stage. 

EVERYMAN THEATRE • CHELTENHAM RADIO BATH

BEN ONWUKWE Joins Bradey & Mills to talk about The Shawshank Redemption

Listen Again below

Tuesday 3rd February we were invited to the iconic London theatre, the London Palladium, for their 40 year celebration and what a night! 

A Show that is very close to my heart for family reasons this was an invite we couldn't turn down, to support the incredible cast and crew who put on a three hour marathon of a gala performance! I couldn't have thought of a better venue to do it in. A big thank you to the London Palladium staff who moved our seats due to James not liking the height of the seats we were originally allocated. 

ODEON Bristol opens 12th February just in time for the Kids half term and they will have opening offers of £4 per ticket for any format of film, whether that is iMAX Or iSense, they are offering £4 tickets and most of their seats are recliner or VIP Pods

Check out https://www.odeon.co.uk/cinemas/bristol/