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The winners of the London Standard Theatre Awards 2025 (formerly the Evening Standard Theatre Awards) have been revealed at a star-studded ceremony at Hampton Court.

Founded in 1955, they are the oldest drama awards in the UK.

The winners were announced yesterday, 22 March 2026, at a ceremony at the Hampton Court home of The Standard’s owner, Evgeny Lebedev. They were hosted by Oh, Mary! star Mason Alexander Park.

Award winners overview

  • Best Play: Punch by James Graham (Young Vic / Apollo Theatre)
  • Best Actress: Hayley Atwell, Much Ado About Nothing
  • Best Actor: Brendan Gleeson, The Weir
  • Best Musical: Evita (London Palladium)
  • Best Musical Performance: Rachel Zegler, Evita
  • Best Director: Omar Elerian, Rhinoceros (Almeida Theatre)
  • Most Promising Playwright: Ava Pickett, 1536 (Almeida Theatre)
  • Emerging Talent: Gracie Oddie-James, The Lady from the Sea (Bridge Theatre)
  • Best Design: David Zinn & Enver Chakartash, Stereophonic
  • The Award for Comedy: Stephen Fry
  • Special Lebedev Award: Cate Blanchett

Book tickets for the award-winning shows here

Stars win big

Jamie Lloyd’s productions of Much Ado About Nothing at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane and Evita at the London Palladium had dominated the nominations with seven overall, although Lloyd failed to pick up the Best Director gong with the award going to Omar Elerian for Rhinoceros at the Almeida Theatre.

However, Hayley Atwell won Best Actress for Jamie Lloyd’s production of Much Ado About Nothing, and Rachel Zegler took home the Best Musical Performance Award for her starring role in Evita.

The acting and special award categories also saw wins for Brendan Gleeson in The Weir, Stephen Fry for The Importance of Being Earnest, and Cate Blanchett for The Seagull.

Ava Pickett won Most Promising Playwright for Almeida hit 1536, which is transferring into the West End’s Ambassadors Theatre in May; and Best Play went to James Graham for Punch.

Awards judging panel

The judging panel for this year’s awards included Deadline journalist Baz Bamigboye, and theatre critics Sarah Crompton, Matt Wolf, Anya Ryan, and Nick Curtis.

Last year’s 2024 awards didn’t take place. The most recent winners, in 2023, included Nicole Scherzinger for Sunset Boulevard, and the show’s director Jamie Lloyd; Patsy Ferran and Anjana Vasan for A Streetcar Named Desire; Andrew Scott for Vanya; and the Bridge Theatre’s Guys & Dolls.

The London Standard Theatre Awards 2025 – List of winners

BEST DESIGN

  • Soutra Gilmour, Much Ado About Nothing, Theatre Royal Drury Lane
  • Magda Willi, The Seagull, Barbican Theatre
  • David Zinn (set) and Enver Chakartash (costumes), Stereophonic, Duke of York’s Theatre – WINNER
  • Frankie Bradshaw, Ballet Shoes, National Theatre
  • Rosanna Vize, The Maids, Donmar Warehouse

MOST PROMISING PLAYWRIGHT

  • Ava Pickett, 1536, Almeida Theatre – WINNER
  • Azuka Oforka, Women of Llanrumney, Theatre Royal Stratford East
  • Katherine Moar, Ragdoll, Jermyn Street Theatre

EMERGING TALENT

  • Ebenezer Bamgboye (director), The Lonely Londoners, Jermyn Street Theatre / Kiln Theatre
  • Gracie Oddie-James, The Lady from the Sea, Bridge Theatre – WINNER
  • Diego Andres Rodriguez, Evita, London Palladium
  • Lucy Karczewski, Stereophonic, Duke of York’s Theatre
  • Zoe Brough, Playhouse Creatures, Orange Tree Theatre

BEST DIRECTOR

  • Jamie Lloyd, Much Ado About Nothing, Theatre Royal Drury Lane
  • Thomas Ostermeier, The Seagull, Barbican Theatre
  • Omar Elerian, Rhinoceros, Almeida Theatre – WINNER
  • Rebecca Frecknall, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Almeida Theatre
  • Nicholas Hytner, Richard II, Bridge Theatre

BEST MUSICAL

  • Evita, London Palladium – WINNER
  • The Producers, Menier Chocolate Factory / Garrick Theatre
  • Here We Are, National Theatre
  • Oliver!, Gielgud Theatre
  • Shucked, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre

BEST MUSICAL PERFORMANCE

  • Rachel Zegler, Evita, London Palladium – WINNER
  • Andy Nyman, The Producers, Menier Chocolate Factory / Garrick Theatre
  • Simon Lipkin, Oliver!, Gielgud Theatre
  • Tracie Bennett, Here We Are, National Theatre
  • Vanessa Williams, The Devil Wears Prada, Dominion Theatre

BEST ACTOR

  • Tom Hiddleston, Much Ado About Nothing, Theatre Royal Drury Lane
  • Michael Shannon, Moon for the Misbegotten, Almeida Theatre
  • Brendan Gleeson, The Weir, Harold Pinter Theatre – WINNER
  • David Shields, Punch, Young Vic Theatre / Apollo Theatre
  • Jonathan Bailey, Richard II, Bridge Theatre

BEST ACTRESS (Natasha Richardson Award for Best Actress)

  • Rosamund Pike, Inter Alia, National Theatre
  • Sharon D Clarke, The Importance of Being Earnest, National Theatre
  • Hayley Atwell, Much Ado About Nothing, Theatre Royal Drury Lane – WINNER
  • Cate Blanchett, The Seagull, Barbican Theatre
  • Ruth Wilson, Moon for the Misbegotten, Almeida Theatre

BEST PLAY

  • Till the Stars Come Down, Beth Steel, National Theatre / Theatre Royal Haymarket
  • Punch, James Graham, Young Vic Theatre / Apollo Theatre – WINNER
  • Stereophonic, David Adjmi, Duke of York’s Theatre
  • Romans: A Novel, Alice Birch, Almeida Theatre
  • The Brightening Air, Conor McPherson, Old Vic Theatre

SPECIAL AWARDS

  • The Award for Comedy: Stephen Fry (The Importance of Being Earnest) – WINNER
  • Special Lebedev Award: Cate Blanchett (The Seagull) – WINNER
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Main photo: The London Standard Theatre Awards 2025 winners. Hayley Atwell and Rachel Zegler (Photos Marc Brenner)

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