OLIVIER AWARDS – Best Comedy Winners

Best New Comedy

2010 The Priory
2009 God of Carnage
2008 Rafta Rafta
2007 John Buchan’s The 39 Steps adapted by Patrick Barlow from an original concept by Simon Corble and Nobby Dimon
2006 Heroes by Gerald Sibleyras translated by Tom Stoppard

Best Comedy

2003 The Lieutenant Of Inishmore by Martin McDonagh
2002 The Play What I Wrote by Hamish McColl, Sean Foley and Eddie Braben
2001 Stones In His Pockets by Marie Jones
2000 The Memory Of Water by Shelagh Stephenson
1999 Cleo, Camping, Emmanuelle And Dick by Terry Johnson
1998 Popcorn by Ben Elton
1997 Art by Yasmina Reza
1996 Mojo by Jez Butterworth
1995 My Night With Reg by Kevin Elyot
1994 Hysteria by Terry Johnson
1993 The Rise And Fall Of Little Voice by Jim Cartwright
1992 La Bête by David Hirson
1991 Out Of Order by Ray Cooney
1989/90 Single Spies by Alan Bennett
1988 Shirley Valentine by Willy Russell
1987 Three Men On A Horse by John Cecil Holm and George Abbott
1986 When We Are Married by J.B. Priestley
1985 A Chorus Of Disapproval by Alan Ayckbourn
1984 Up’N’Under by John Godber
1983 Daisy Pulls It Off by Denise Deegan
1982 Noises Off by Michael Frayn
1981 Steaming by Nell Dunn
1980 Educating Rita by Willy Russell
1979 Middle Age Spread by Roger Hall
1978 Filumena by Eduardo de Filippo, adapted by Keith Waterhouse and Willis Hall
1977 Privates On Parade by Peter Nichols
1976 Donkey’s Years by Michael Frayn

Best Comedy Performance

1995 Niall Buggy for Dead Funny
1994 Griff Rhys Jones for An Absolute Turkey
1993 Simon Cadell for Travels With My Aunt
1992 Desmond Barrit for The Comedy Of Errors
1991 Alan Cumming for Accidental Death Of An Anarchist
1989/90 Michael Gambon for Man Of The Moment
1988 Alex Jennings for Too Clever By Half
1987 John Woodvine for The Henrys
1986 Bill Fraser for When We Are Married
1985 Michael Gambon for A Chorus Of Disapproval
1984 Maureen Lipman for See How They Run
1983 Griff Rhys Jones for Charley’s Aunt
1982 Geoffrey Hutchings for Poppy
1981 Rowan Atkinson for Rowan Atkinson in Revue
1980 Beryl Reid for Born In The Gardens
1979 Barry Humphries for A Night With Dame Edna
1978 Ian McKellen for The Alchemist
1977 Denis Quilley for Privates On Parade
1976 Penelope Keith for Donkey’s Years

Already London’s long-running rock musical, We Will Rock You celebrated its birthday on Monday night with a charity gala performance attended by the show’s co-creators – and Queen band members – Brian May and Roger Taylor, who joined the company on stage for the finale.

The producers recently announced that the show has extended its booking period to April 2010 – setting it on course to reach its 10th year.

Using the music of rock legends Queen, and with a book by best-selling author Ben Elton, the show takes place in a futuristic world, Planet Mall, where rock music is banned. Globalisation is complete; everywhere the kids watch the same movies, wear the same fashions and think the same thoughts. Individuality is unthinkable… unless you are a rebel, a Bohemian, who lives in the underbelly and resists the sterile world above. The Bohemians believe instruments still exist somewhere on Planet Mall, they just need a hero to find them. Is Galileo that man?

The show features many of Queen’s greatest hits including Killer Queen, Bohemian Rhapsody, Radio GaGa and the title track.

SPECIAL OFFER: Save £22.50 on tickets to We Will Rock You at the Dominion Theatre in London

Editors update since this article was first posted: See a round-up of Love Never Dies reveiews from critics following last night’s world premiere at the Adelphi Theatre in London

Andrew Lloyd Webber’s brand new musical Love Never Dies will start previewing tonight at the Adelphi Theatre in London.

Ramin Karimloo

And to say there is some anticipation is an understatement.

The show is directed by legendary Broadway director Jack O’Brien, responsible for big Broadway hits The Full Monty and Hairspray.

The first preview performance was originally scheduled for Saturday 20 February but had to be cancelled to give the cast and crew more time to rehearse.

The multi-million pound new musical, which has already taken more than £8 million at the box-office, follows the story of Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera, this time setting the show on Coney Island in New York at the turn of the last century.

The original musical has been seen by over 100 million people worldwide, so the pressure is on to create a new work that lives up to the incredible legacy of the original.

The new show is based on a novel by Frederick Forsyth called The Phantom Of Manhattan, and adapted initially by Ben Elton (We Will Rock You), who was responsible for reintroducing some of the original characters including Christine and Raoul.

A strong launch cast includes Ramin Karimloo as the Phantom, Sierra Boggess as Christine, Liz Robertson as Madame Giry, Summer Strallen as her daughter Meg,  Joseph Millson as Raoul, Niamh Perry as Fleck, Adam Pearce as Squelch and Jami Reid-Quarrell as Gangle.

Joseph Millson

The show’s World Premiere will be on Tuesday 9 March 2010, followed by New York on Thursday 11 November and Australia in 2011.

In the musical, the story continues with the Phantom moving from his lair in the Paris Opera House to haunt the fairgrounds of Coney Island in New York. Set ten years after the mysterious disappearance of the Phantom from Paris, the show works on the themes of obsession and intrigue, promising a number of shocking plot twists and large-scale spectacles.

Summer Strallen

LOVE NEVER DIES – CREATIVE TEAM:

Director – Jack O’Brien (Hairspray, The Full Monty, Catch Me If You Can)

Music – Andrew Lloyd Webber (The Phantom of the Opera, Cats, Evita)

Lyricist – Glenn Slater(The Little Mermaid, Sister Act)

Set and costume designer – Bob Crowley (Phèdre, The History Boys, Mary Poppins)

Choreographer-  Jerry Mitchell (Legally Blonde, Hairspray, The Full Monty)

Book tickets to see Love Never Dies at the Adelphi Theatre in London

Hotel and theatre breaks to see Love Never Dies

Andrew Lloyd-Webber’s new sequel to The Phantom of the Opera – “Love Never Dies” – will have its world premiere in London, as reported today by Baz Bamigboye in the Daily Mail.

It was initially believed that the new blockbusting musical would open simultaneously in New York, London and Shanghai, but it now appears that managing the logistics of this has proved too complex. However, the show will still break new ground in opening productions around the world in quick succession – starting with London and then following with Toronto, Shanghai and then Broadway.

In London, the show will play at the Adelphi Theatre, owned by Lloyd-Webber’s Really Useful Group, in late October or early November.

Lloyd-Webber also revealed to Baz that, as predicted by previous rumours, Ramin Karimloo and Sierra Boggess will launch the show in the two main leads.

Variety recently reported that the show would open in Toronto at the Canon Theater, where the original Phantom launched in Canada in 1989, although Lloyd-Webber has now confirmed that it will open after London at the Royal Alexandra Theatre in Toronto and then go to Broadway.

The show’s music is written by Lloyd Webber with a book by Ben Elton, who has more than proved his musical credentials with We Will Rock You, which continues to pack them in and celebrates the start of its 8^th year in London from the end of April.

The book is based on an original idea by best selling author Frederick Forsyth, and is set in Coney Island in 1907.

Ramin Karimloo (pictured) is currently appearing as the Phantom in the West End and will continue in the role in the new production. The actor was born in Iran and brought up in Canada.

A notice placed on the Actors’ Equity Association website says of the plot that, “the mysterious “Maestro” who runs the theatre at Coney Island announces a one-off concert by legendary Parisian soprano Christine Daaé. Her arrival in New York with husband Raoul, Victome de Chagny and son Gustave, and their subsequent meeting with the “Maestro,” bring the cataclysmic events of 10 years earlier at the Paris Opera crashing back into all their lives.”

Director Jack O’Brien and choreographer Jerry Mitchell – the dream team from the Hairspray musical – will stage the show.

O’Brien said to Baz that Lloyd-Webber was enormously passionate about the project: “‘It is like the last flowering of a great era of lyric romanticism – the theatre doesn’t seem to have that any more.”

It is unclear whether Jospeh, currently playing at the Adelphi Theatre starring Gareth Gates, will extend its run until Love Never Dies Opens.

BOOK TICKETS TO THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA – PLUS SAVE ON THEATRE AND DINNER PACKAGES

Original article published 20 March 2009