Paddington has found his new home in London, and he’ll be setting up shop with Marmalade sandwiches in tow over at the Savoy theatre come the end of the year. We caught wind of the news of the nation’s favourite bear being adapted to the stage back in 2023, but Paddington: The Musical has an official launch date, hitting the West End from November 1, 2025.
As we heard previously, Tom Fletcher from boyband McFly will be in charge of bringing the story of our Peruvian friend to life via the power of sound, with all songs and lyrics written by the musician and bestselling children’s books author. Luke Shepperd is at the helm on creative duties and will direct the production that’s adapted from the beloved books by Michael Bond.
What else do we know about ‘Paddington: The Musical’?
The detail everyone wants to know is, of course, what form will we see Paddington bear in? This is still being kept under wraps, with different routes the show can go down, but with the rest of the cast announced, we can probably call it a safe bet that Paddington will not be a human, per se (at least technically in his physical form).
As mentioned, the rest of the cast has now been announced, with Timi Akinyosade as Tony; Amy Booth-Steel as Lady Sloane; Joseph Bramley/Leo Collon/Stevie Hare as Jonathan Brown; Amy Ellen-Richardson as Mrs Brown; Tarrin Callender as Grant; Delilah Bennett-Cardy as Judy Brown; Adrian Der Greogorian as Mr Brown; and Brenda Edwards as Tanya. (You can read the cast in full here)
The musical is brought to us by Sonia Friedman Productions, StudioCanal and Eliza Lumley Productions. A book of the musical will also be penned by playwright Jessica Swale,
Speaking on the news, director Luke Sheppard said: “This is Paddington as you’ve never seen him before, brought to life by a team celebrating all of the magic and wonder of live theatre. Alongside our producers Sonia Friedman and Eliza Lumley, who look after this bear with the greatest care, we’ve been dreaming up big things for Paddington and can’t wait to welcome him to this iconic venue later this year.”
‘Paddington: The Musical’ hits the Savoy Theatre on November 1, 2025. Find out more here.