Billy Elliot The Musical to return to the West End in 2027

Billy Elliot The Musical is to return to the West End for the first time in over a decade, with original Olivier Award-winning Billy, Liam Mower, rejoining the show to play Older Billy and four new boys announced to take on the iconic title role following an extensive global search.

The original award-winning production Billy Elliot The Musical will play a strictly limited West End season at the Adelphi Theatre from 12 February to 31 July 2027, the culmination of a national tour that opens at Sunderland Empire on 4 November 2026 before visiting Manchester and Edinburgh.

The four young performers sharing the title role are Noah Mannion (12, from Stockport), Rafferty Smale (12, from Leigh-on-Sea), Spencer Collins (13, from California) and William Gurney (12, from Berkshire). Further touring dates and full casting are to be announced.

View live availability for Billy Elliot The Musical here

The return of the original Billy

In a moment sure to delight long-time fans, Liam Mower: one of the three boys who created the role when the musical first opened in 2005, returns to the production to play Older Billy. Mower made history in 2006 when he, James Lomas and George Maguire became the youngest performers ever to win the Olivier Award for Best Actor for the role.

In the years since, he has built a distinguished dance career with Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures, taking lead roles in Swan Lake, Edward Scissorhands, The Red Shoes and Sleeping Beauty, and more recently appeared as Mr Mistoffelees in the international tour of Cats.

His return neatly bookends the show’s story: more than twenty years after he helped originate the part, Mower now plays the grown-up version of the character that launched his career.

Four new boys take the title role

Elton John posing with four smiling new Billys

The four boys announced to share the title role each bring remarkable dance pedigree. Noah Mannion represented England at the 2025 Dance World Cup and Global Dance Open, earning the title of Global World Champion after just two years of competitive dancing.

Rafferty Smale is a full-time student at the Royal Ballet’s White Lodge who has performed in the Royal Ballet’s Cinderella, Don Quixote and The Nutcracker.

Spencer Collins, from California, is an International Scholar of the Royal Ballet School who won the prestigious Hope Award at the 2025 YAGP Finals, and William Gurney, a Sylvia Young Theatre School student, has played Tommy in Matilda the Musical and appeared in TV shows including Call the Midwife and Strike.

Over 125 boys have now played the title role on stage worldwide since the show first opened.

About Billy Elliot The Musical

Based on the multi-BAFTA-winning, Academy Award-nominated film, Billy Elliot The Musical is set in a northern mining town against the backdrop of the 1984/85 miners’ strike. It follows Billy’s journey from the boxing ring to the ballet class, where he discovers a passion for dance that inspires his family and his whole community, and changes his life forever.

Acclaimed by audiences and critics alike, the show has been seen by just over 12 million people across five continents and has won more than 80 awards internationally, including ten Tony Awards and five Olivier Awards.

It is brought to life by the multiple award-winning creative team behind the film: writer Lee Hall (book and lyrics), director Stephen Daldry and choreographer Peter Darling, joined by Elton John, who composed the show’s score.

Box Out: Book tickets to Billy Elliot The Musical here

Plan your visit to Billy Elliot The Musical (London)

Theatre: Adelphi Theatre, Strand, London WC2R 0NS
London dates: 12 February – 31 July 2027
Tour dates before London: Sunderland Empire (4–28 November 2026), Palace Theatre Manchester (2 December 2026 – 9 January 2027), Edinburgh Playhouse (19 January – 6 February 2027). Further dates to be announced.

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