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When The Greatest Showman came out back in 2017, it was a phenomenal, truly world-conquering hit. Its soundtrack won a Grammy, its standout song ‘This Is Me’ got a Golden Globe and it quickly became one of the highest-grossing movie musicals of all time. Given its monumental success and the fact that it comes pretty much ready-made, a stage version of the film was only a matter of time.
Ladies and gentlemen – after years of anticipation The Greatest Showman: The Musical is set make its global debut right here in the UK in just a couple of months. And Time out has named it one of the best things to see in the country in 2026.
RECOMMENDED: This once-in-a-lifetime London exhibition will be the best thing to see in the UK in 2026.
The musical from Disney will come to the stage for the first time ever at Bristol Hippodrome from March 15 until May 10. Time Out’s theatre editor Andrzej Lukowski, said: ‘Clearly the goal is for it to head to the West End and Broadway, but a musical of this scale always gets an out-of-town try-out first.’
In case you’re not familiar with the film, it’s (very, very loosely) based on the life of American showman PT Barnum, depicting his rise from poverty-stricken kid to his founding of the travelling circus he called the ‘greatest show on Earth’. The stage adaptation will feature all the songs from the movie, as well as new ones from original songwriters Benj Pasek and Justin Paul and the cast will be led by West End heavyweights Oliver Tompsett as PT Barnum and Samantha Barks as his wife Charity. It’s being directed by Casey Nicholaw, whose other credentials include Mean Girls, Hercules and The Book of Mormon.
We hate to say that all tickets for Bristol’s run of shows are now sold out, but there is a possibility that more will be released closer to the start of performances. If you still fancy your chances you can join a waitlist here. While you wait, you could check out Come Alive!, a ‘circus spectacular’ in London that’s also based on the movie.
📍 Read more about all the best new things to do in the UK in 2026 here.
The 14 best places to visit in the UK in 2026.
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