books

PREVIEW: 9 reasons why we can’t wait for January 2026 starring The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

  1. The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry

Passenger wrote the music and lyrics for this adaptation of the novel at Theatre Royal Haymarket starring The Full Monty‘s Mark Addy and Jenna Russell (Hello Dolly! London Palladium) running 29 January through 18 April 2026. It’s the story of a man who receives a letter from a long-lost friend and walks from Devon to Berwick-upon-Tweed. Tickets

  • Read on for reasons including American Psycho, I’m Sorry Prime Minister and The History Of Sound
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ALBUM OF THE MONTH: Everybody Scream by Florence And The Machine (December 2025)

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WORTH A LOOK?: ****

Tracklist: Everybody Scream; One Of The Greats; Witch Dance; Sympathy Magic; Perfume And Milk; Buckle; Kraken; The Old Religion; Drink Deep; Music By Men; You Can Have It All; And Love

‘The closest I came to making life was the closest I came to death,’ says lead singer Florence Welch. ‘And I felt like I had stepped through this door, and it was just full of women, screaming.’

  • Read on for reasons including how this can lay claim to Welch’s most personal album to date
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THEATRE REVIEW: High Noon starring Billy Crudup & Denise Gough at Harold Pinter Theatre

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By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK? ***1/2

WHEN? Friday 19 December, opens 9 January and runs through 7 March 2026 RUNTIME 100 minutes without interval

There’s a clock above the stage ticking forward in real time to the titular High Noon as Billy Crudup’s marshal Will Kane prepares to meet his fate.

  • Read on for reasons including how Gough and Crudup make for a couple the audience can root for
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AWARDS SHORTLIST: MONSTAS: Best Revival of 2025

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

It’s been quite the year, it’s almost Christmas and what would the festive season be without some recognition of the best of 2025? Over the next week we’ll shortlist five nominees in each of 17 categories for our Oscars, or monstas if you will, of 2025.

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THEATRE REVIEW: Woman In Mind starring Sheridan Smith & Romesh Ranganathan at Duke Of York’s Theatre

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By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK? ***1/2

WHEN? Friday 12 December, opens 6 January and runs through 28 February 2026 and then to Sunderland Empire and Glasgow Theatre Royal RUNTIME: 150 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)

Patsy Cline’s Crazy and Jamiroquai‘s Virtual Insanity play immediately before curtain up to establish the mood as we enter the mind of Susan played by national treasure Sheridan Smith (Opening Night, Gielgud Theatre).

  • Read on for reasons including how Smith brings the warmth and humanity she is renowned for to some still topical material
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THEATRE REVIEW: Sleeping Beauty starring Catherine Tate & Julian Clary at the London Palladium

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By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK? *****

WHEN? Sunday 7 December, opens 11 December and runs through 11 January 2026 RUNTIME: 150 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)

Bovvered? Christmas is a time of tradition and this year marks the 10th since the return of the pantomime to the boards of the London Palladium.

  • Read on for reasons including why there’s simply no other pantomime in any other venue across the land that can top it for spectacle and laughs
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AWARDS SHORTLIST: MONSTAS: Best Song of 2025

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

It’s been quite the year, it’s almost Christmas and what would the festive season be without some recognition of the best of 2025? Over the next month we’ll shortlist five nominees in each of 17 categories for our Oscars, or monstas if you will, of 2025.

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THEATRE REVIEW: Fallen Angels starring Janie Dee at the Menier Chocolate Factory

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By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK? ****

WHEN? Saturday 22 November (matinee), opens 2 December and runs through 21 February 2026 RUNTIME 120 minutes (including interval)

This Noel Coward comedy about 2 married women admitting to premarital sex and contemplating adultery was 1st performed in London 100 years ago with the theatre censor initially recommending it shouldn’t be staged because the morals of the female leads ‘would cause too great a scandal’.

  • Read on for reasons including how this production is as frivolous, light and intoxicating as the champagne bubbles that its leading ladies savour so enthusiastically here
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THEATRE REVIEW: All My Sons starring Bryan Cranston, Marianne Jean-Baptiste & Paapa Essiedu at the Wyndham’s Theatre

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK? *****

WHEN? Saturday 15 November, opens 21 November and runs through 7 March 2026 RUNTIME: 135 minutes (no interval)

Cranston (from TV’s Breaking Bad) plays under-fire US businessman Joe Keller post World War 2 in this Arthur Miller classic and occasionally sports a red baseball cap that can’t help but bring to mind the current US President.

  • Read on for reasons including how this exploration of the dark side of the American dream is the best production of this classic we’ve ever seen
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AWARDS SHORTLIST: MONSTAS: Best Gig of 2025

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

It’s been quite the year, it’s almost Christmas and what would the festive season be without some recognition of the best of 2025? Over the next 2 months we’ll shortlist five nominees in each of 17 categories for our Oscars, or monstas if you will, of 2025.

Read More