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The National Theatre has announced initial casting for its new touring production of acclaimed play Dear England by James Graham (Sherwood).

David Sturzaker (Doctors, To Kill a Mockingbird) will play England manager Gareth Southgate, with EastEnders and Mount Pleasant star Samantha Womack as team psychologist Pippa Grange.

The cast also includes returning performers Jass Beki as Bukayo Saka, Courtney George as Alex Scott, Miles Henderson as Ensemble, and Tom Lane as Eric Dier.

They will be joined by new cast members Jake Ashton-Nelson as Jordan Henderson, Luke Azille as Jadon Sancho, Ian Bartholomew as Greg Dyke, Ashley Byam as Raheem Sterling, Steven Dykes as Sam Allardyce, Oscar Gough as Harry Kane, Jayden Hanley as Marcus Rashford, Connor Hawker as Harry Maguire, Ian Kirkby as Gary Lineker, Jack Maddison as Jordan Pickford, Liam Prince-Donnelly as Dele Alli, and George Rainsford as Mike Webster.

Also joining the company are ensemble cast members Stuart Ash, Natalie Boakye, Sam Craig, and Jonathan Markwood.

Dear England - Cast announced for the 2025-2026 tour. Photo by Justine Matthew
Dear England – The cast on the first day of rehearsals for the 2025-2026 tour. Photo by Justine Matthew

Dear England is the inspiring, at times heartbreaking, and ultimately uplifting story of Gareth Southgate’s revolutionary tenure as England manager.

Winner of the Olivier Award for Best New Play, Dear England broke box office records at the National Theatre for its two successful runs, and also in the West End at the Prince Edward Theatre.

The new UK tour is running from 15 September 2025 to 14 March 2026, touring to Plymouth, Nottingham, Canterbury, Sheffield, Leeds, Newcastle, Chichester, Southampton, Milton Keynes, Oxford, Norwich, Woking, Bradford, Wimbledon, Liverpool, and Birmingham. See all dates and venues here.

More about David Sturzaker & Samantha Womack

David Sturzaker is best known for playing Simon Bond in BBC One’s Doctors. Theatre credits include Captain Stanhope in Journey’s End (West End), To Kill a Mockingbird (West End), Charles II (The Globe/West End) and Torvald Helmer in A Doll’s House (Royal Exchange). Other screen credits include Endeavour (ITV), Da Vinci’s Demons (STARZ) and Father Brown (BBC One).

Samantha Womack is best known for playing Ronnie Mitchell in BBC One’s EastEnders. She has also starred in Game On (BBC Two) and Mount Pleasant (Sky) on TV, represented the United Kingdom at the Eurovision Song Contest and performed leading stage roles in the West End and on tour. Theatre credits include Rachel in The Girl on the Train and The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe (West End and UK Tours), 42nd Street and Morticia in The Addams Family (UK tours); South Pacific (Barbican/UK tour) and Guys and Dolls (West End). Other screen credits include Silent Witness (BBC One), The Marlow Murder Club (UKTV) and film, Kingsman: The Secret Service (20th Century Studios).

The creators of Dear England

Dear England is written by the multi-award-winning stage and screen writer, James Graham (Punch, West End; Sherwood, BBC One), directed by outgoing Almeida Theatre 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).

The wider creative team for Dear England includes costume designer, Evie Gurney; lighting designer, Jon Clark; co-movement directors, Ellen Kane and Hannes Langolf; video designer, Ash J Woodward; co-sound designers, Dan Balfour and Tom Gibbons with additional music by Max Perryment; revival director Connie Treves; revival movement director Tom Herron; casting director Bryony Jarvis-Taylor CDG; associate lighting designer Ben Jacobs; associate video designer Libby Ward; associate sound designer Johnny Edwards; casting associate Lilly Mackie; and resident director Dan Hutton.

Dear England is produced by the National Theatre, in a co-production with Josh Andrews and Stuart Galbraith for JAS Theatricals.

“I am so excited to be returning to the stage to perform in Dear England“

David Sturzaker said in a statement: “I’m thrilled to be taking on the role of Gareth Southgate. It’s a great responsibility and an honour to be playing him. He’s been an inspiring figurehead for many, rebuilding a team, and the country’s self-belief at what is possible, on and off, the football pitch. This is one of the aspects of the play that resonates most for me – the ability of football, and sport in general, to extend its reach beyond the game, to unite us and inspire us in our lives beyond the sport itself. It’s also hugely exciting to be involved in a production that has already been such a hit in London and Salford. I’m looking forward to taking Dear England on tour across the country, giving many more people the opportunity to see this fantastic show.”

Samantha Womack said: “I am so excited to be returning to the stage to perform in Dear England. It’s a wonderful piece of theatre – entertaining and thought-provoking as well as incredibly staged. I am also fascinated by Pippa Grange and her impact on England men’s team during her term as Head of People and Team Development at the Football Association during Gareth Southgate’s tenure. She fundamentally changed the culture and, in turn, the course of sporting history by teaching the squad to embrace their fears and she’s an extremely inspiring role to take on. I can’t wait to delve in and get back to touring around the country with this fantastic show.”

Book tickets to Dear England

Tickets are now available for the Dear England – UK Tour, playing UK venues in 2025 and 2026.

UPDATES: First published 22 July with news of the casting of David Sturzaker & Samantha Womack; Updated 5 August 2025 with news of the full cast for Dear England

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Main photo: Dear England tour - David Sturzaker (Photo Michael Shelford) and Samantha Womack (Photo Michelle George)

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