More dates have been added to the 2026 UK and Ireland tour of hit musical Barnum.
The Barnum tour starts at the Theatre Royal Windsor on 30 January 2026, and then visits Manchester, York, Brighton, Portsmouth, Cardiff, Aylesbury, Bradford, Cheltenham, Dublin, Birmingham, Sheffield, Swindon, Woking, Nottingham, Hull, Blackpool, Bournemouth, London, Southend-on-Sea, and Newcastle. Further dates are to be announced.
West End and TV star Lee Mead (Sister Act, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat) will star as PT Barnum in the show, for all dates up to Southend-on-Sea.
From 12 August 2026, when the tour starts up again in Newcastle, the show will star Matt Rawle (Les Miserables, Evita) as PT Barnum.
Further casting for Barnum is set to be announced soon.
This acclaimed new production of Barnum, directed by Jonathan O’Boyle (Cruel Intentions: The 90s Musical), first premiered last year at the Watermill Theatre in Newbury, starring Matt Rawle, Monique Young (Mary Poppins) as Charity Barnum, and Penny Ashmore (Dr Strangelove) as Jenny Lind.
Choreography will be by Strictly Come Dancing’s Oti Mabuse, and the production features a dynamic ensemble of over 20 actor-musicians playing 150 instruments, and trained acrobats and circus arts adding an extra layer of circus spectacle to the show.
In Newbury, the production won wide audience and critical acclaim when it premiered last summer 2024 at the Watermill, with the Observer hailing the show as a ★★★★★ “dazzling all-singing, all-juggling musical”.
More about Barnum
Barnum’s rousing score, with music by Cy Coleman, lyrics by Michael Stewart and a book by Mark Bramble (42nd Street), includes classics such as “There’s a Sucker Born Every Minute,” “Join the Circus,” “The Colors of My Life” and “Come Follow The Band.”
Barnum is a joyful and moving musical portrait of the 19th century’s greatest showbiz legend, PT Barnum, tracing the career of America’s greatest showman from 1835 to the year he joined James A. Bailey, to forming The Greatest Show On Earth.
Joining Jonathan O’Boyle and Oti Mabuse in the creative team are set and costume design by Lee Newby, musical supervision, arrangements and orchestrations by George Dyer, lighting design by Jai Morjaria, sound design by Tom Marshall, and circus direction by Amy Panter. Matt Nicholson is associate choreographer and Nick Lodge is associate sound designer.
Book tickets to BARNUM – UK & Ireland tour
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Lee Mead in Barnum (until 4 July 2026)
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