PREVIEW/PREDICTIONS: Eurovision Song Contest 2026 Semi Final 1 starring Linda Lampenius & Pete Parkkonen, FELICIA, Vanilla Ninja & Senhit ft Boy George

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WHEN? 12 May 2026 HOW TO WATCH? BBC1 in the UK at 8pm

WHERE? Wiener Stadthalle, Vienna

Juries return to the semi finals for the 1st time since 2022 and the 1st semi is notable for the appearance of the contest’s runaway favourite at the time of writing – Finland (pictured) – and controversial inclusion of Israel.

  • Read on for reasons including Akylas, Satoshi & Noam Bettan
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THEATRE REVIEW: One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest starring Aaron Pierre, Giles Terera & Kedar Williams-Stirling at the Old Vic

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By Aline Mahrud

WORTH A LOOK?: *****

WHEN?: Thursday 2 April, opens 15 April and runs through 23 May 2026 RUNTIME: 160 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)

Film One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest starred a dynamic Jack Nicholson and won 5 Oscars in 1975 but director Clint Dyer (Death Of England: The Plays) has chosen instead to go back to the 1962 novel for inspiration.

  • Read on for reasons including how those who thought they knew this story may just have their minds changed by this powerful and emotional reinvention
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THEATRE REVIEW: Our Town starring Michael Sheen at Rose Theatre, Kingston

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By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ***1/2

WHEN? Saturday 28 March (matinee) and runs through 28 March 2026 RUNTIME: 140 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)

‘No other play I’ve read or seen performed has ever affected me in quite the same way,’ writes star Michael Sheen (Nye, National Theatre) of this revival of a classic as the 1st production of the Welsh National Theatre.

  • Read on for reasons including how there’s a world where there is a West End transfer for this show
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THEATRE REVIEW: Copenhagen starring Richard Schiff, Damien Malony & Alex Kingston

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By Aline Mahrud

WORTH A LOOK?: ****

WHEN?: Wednesday 1 April, opens 2 April and runs through 2 May 2026 RUN TIME: 170 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)

What happened when German physicist Werner Heisenberg visited his mentor Niels Bohr, whose father was Jewish, in the titular Copenhagen in 1941?

  • Read on for reasons including how this is a brilliantly cast revival of a thought-provoking play which has plenty to say about world events we are currently living through
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THEATRE REVIEW: Les Liaisons Dangereuses starring Lesley Manville and Aidan Turner at the National Theatre

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By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ****

WHEN? Monday 30 March, opens 1 April and runs through 6 June 2026 RUNTIME: 180 minutes (includes a 20-minute interval)

Manville (Oedipus, Wyndham’s Theatre) played young virgin Cécile in the original Royal Shakespeare Company production of this 1985 play and so it’s deliciously appropriate she returns to lead the cast in this Marianne Elliott-directed (COCK, Ambassadors Theatre) revival.

  • Read on for reasons including how this is a wonderfully cast romp through a razor-sharp period piece which doesn’t quite convince of its relevance to today
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THEATRE REVIEW: Choir Boy starring Terique Jarrett at Stratford East

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By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ***1/2

WHEN? Saturday 28 March, opens 31 March and runs through 25 April 2026 RUNTIME: 140 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)

Author Tarell Alvin McCraney won the 2017 Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for Moonlight and like that film Choir Boy is the story of a young black man struggling with his sexuality.

  • Read on for reasons including how this is exactly the sort of work we’ve longed to see at this venue
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ALBUM OF THE MONTH: Sexistential by Robyn (March 2026)

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WORTH A LOOK?: ****

Tracklist: Really Real; Dopamine; Blow My Mind; Sucker For Love; It Doesn’t Mean A Thing; Talk To Me; Sexistential; Light Up; Into The Sun

We last saw Robyn onstage at The 02 as special guest of Charli XCX in 2024 and this summer she headlines there with this comeback album.

  • Read on for reasons including how Robyn’s a trailblazer who’s maturing while still horny for Prince influences despite new motherhood post-break up
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THEATRE REVIEW: Romeo and Juliet starring Sadie Sink at the Harold Pinter Theatre

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By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: *****

WHEN? Friday 27 March, opens 31 March and runs through 20 June 2026 RUNTIME: 175 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)

Sink may have found worldwide fame with Netflix’s Stranger Things but the 23-year-old has been performing in theatre since 2011 including as the lead in Annie on Broadway and being nominated for a Tony as Best Actress last year for John Proctor Is The Villain which has just opened in London.

  • Read on for reasons including how Sadie Sink is a mesmerising heroine in this production which breathes new life into a classic
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THEATRE REVIEW: Rachel Zegler and Ben Platt in The Last Five Years at the London Palladium

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By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ****1/2

WHEN? Tuesday 25 March and runs through 29 March 2026 RUNTIME: 90 minutes (no interval)

Zegler (EVITA, London Palladium) plays struggling actress Cathy in this 25th anniversary concert performance of a musical opposite Ben Platt’s Jamie who is becoming a successful author.

  • Read on for reasons including how Zegler and Platt give thrilling performances in this unusual concert staging
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THEATRE REVIEW: Avenue Q at Shaftesbury Theatre

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By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ****

WHEN? Saturday 21 March (matinee), opens 16 April and runs through August 29 2026 RUNTIME: 140 minutes (with a 20-minute interval)

With song titles like It Sucks To Be Me, If You Were Gay and Everyone’s A Little Bit Racist, this 3-time Tony Award winner is very much an adult take on Sesame Street with puppets.

  • Read on for reasons including how Avenue Q has lots of irreverent laughs and more fun-filled songs than you could shake a stick (puppet) at
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