The best London musicals to see in 2026

What is it? Avenue Q was a ’00s musical theatre phenomenon, a profane, puppet-driven mash up of Sesame Street and Rent. Centring on young puppet Princeton, it follows the misadventure of him and the assortment of humans and puppets he encounters as he moves into the titular run down New York suburb. And in 2026 it returns, in a twentieth anniversay British revival that will gather the original Broadway puppets and creative team for what’s being billed as a strictly limited revival run.

Where is it? Shaftesbury Theatre.

What is it? This long-gestating musical version of ‘Back to the Future’ is so desperate to please that the producers would doubtless offer a free trip back in time with every ticket purchase if the laws of physics allowed.

Where is it? Adelphi Theatre

This new musical from songwriter Finn Anderson and director Tania Azevedo interweaves original songs and centuries-old traditional Scottish, Irish, and Appalachian standards as it tells the story of a queer New York woman who finds herself pulled into the lives of three centuries of her female ancestors. Frances McNamee, Rebecca Trehearn and Kirsty Findlay lead the cast.

What is it? Technically known as Beetlejuice The Musical. The Musical. The Musical, this massive scale Broadway adaptation of the classic Tim Burton comedy horror movie has been a big hit in the States. For those unfamiliar, Burton’s 1988 film concerns a couple who die and awaken in the afterlife, only to discover that a ghastly new family has occupied their dream home. They summon the batshit mental ‘bio-exorcist’ Betelgeuse to drive the interlopers away, with catastrophic results.

Where is it? Prince Edward Theatre.

What is it? South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone’s Broadway-munching musical is a somewhat improbably big-hearted affair that sails close to the wind at times but nonetheless pays note-perfect homage to the sounds and spirit of Broadway’s golden age.

Where is it? Prince of Wales Theatre.

What is it? Years after its original superstar leads Eddie Redmayne and Jessie Buckley moved on, Rebecca Frecknall’s stylish take on the Kander & Ebb classic keeps going, thanks to Tom Scutt’s virtuosic delight and a steady stream of talking point leads. 

Where is it? Playhouse Theatre.

What is it? It’s finally happened: human civilization has finally lasted long enough that there is a second British production of Cats. Audaciously bagged by the Open Air Theatre as its big 2026 summer musical, but embarking on a UK tour thereafter, it’ll be directed and chroegraphed by OAT boss Drew McOnie. He’s a slick, commercial director with something of a dance focus, but he’s unlikely to do a Jamie Lloyd-style deconstruction of it, but any new take will probably feel inherently radical purely by dint of trying something different in any way.

Where is it? Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre.

What is it? This is a fun one: Death Note the Musical is an adaptation of the hit manga that tells the story of one Light Yagami, a brilliant student who is given a notebook by a capricious magical being. The book has one very specific function: anyone whose name is written in it will die within 40 seconds. The power goes to Light’s head, as he comes to see himself as a god tasked with eliminating evildoers from the planet. But the world’s governments hire a secretive detective to try and find the person responsible for the inexplicable deaths. 

Where is it? Barbican Centre.

What is it? The Devil Wears Prada is an all-singing adaptation of the 2006 millennial classic about a mousy young journalism graduate who blunders into the job of PA to a tyrannical, Anna Wintour-alike fashion editor. The songs are by none other than Elton John. The director-choreographer is Broadway veteran Jerry Mitchell. There’s some serious talent involved. And yet being turned into a musical does… almost nothing for it.

Where is it? Dominion Theatre.

What is it? What a long, strange trip it’s been. Indie-folk musician Anaïs Mitchell’s musical retelling of the Orpheus story began life in the mid-’00s as a lo-fi song cycle – going through the next 14 years blow-by-blow would be time-consuming, but in short thanks to what I can only describe as THEATRE MAGIC, Hadestown is now a full-blown musical directed by the visionary Rachel Chavkin, its success as a show vastly outstripping that of the record.

Where is it? Lyric Theatre.