Stage & Screen Stars to Appear at Belgrade Theatre in Spring 2016

Coventry's Belgrade Theatre has today announced details of casting for five star-studded new shows touring to the venue in Spring 2016 which include a new UK tour of End of the Rainbow starring Loose Women's Lisa Maxwell, the UK stage premiere of Jackie The Musical starring Janet Dibley and a new touring production of the laugh-out-loud comedy, Menopause the Musical starring Irish pop icon Linda Nolan and Eastenders actress Cheryl Fergison.

Fans of theatrical intrigue can look forward to a classic installment of murder mystery in a brand new stage adaptation of Frederick Knott's darkly gripping thriller, Dial M For Murder from Tues 26 - Sat 30 Jan starring Coronation Street's Oliver Mellor, Hollyoaks actress Terry Dwyer and Brookside's Marcus Hutton.

Famously filmed by Alfred Hitchcock, Frederick Knott's intense and darkly gripping thriller is brought to life on stage in a new production by talking Scarlet and promises to keep you on the end of your seats right up until the nail-biting climax.

This will be followed by a visit from Loose Women's Lisa Maxwell in a new UK tour of the celebrated West-End smash hit, End of The Rainbow from Tues 23 - Sat 27 Feb. Best known for her role as Samantha Nixon in ITV's The Bill from 2002 and 2009, and as a panelist on ITV's Loose Women from 2009 - 2014, Lisa will take up the role of Judy Garland in this brand new touring production directed by Daniel Buckroyd. She will be joined on stage by celebrated stage actor and musical star, Gary Wilmott and Hollyoaks star, Sam Attwater, best known for winning the sixth series of ITV's Dancing on Ice in 2011 and his stage roles in the 40th Anniversary tour of The Rocky Horror Show, Dreamboats and Petticoats in the West End, and the 2014 UK Tour of Seven Brides for Seven Brothers.

Featuring Garland's most memorable songs including The Man That Got Away, Come Rain Or Come Shine, The Trolley Song and of course Somewhere Over The Rainbow, End of the Rainbow is a fiercely funny and emotionally charged musical play filled with Garland's legendary tenacity, razor-sharp wit and once-in-a-generation voice.

Before the age of mobiles, online dating, Facebook and Snapchat, there was only one place a girl could go for her weekly fashion and dating fix...Jackie Magazine. Set to a pulsating soundtrack of classic 70s hits including pop idols Donny Osmond, David Cassidy, Marc Bolan and many more, Jackie The Musical

is a fun and feisty new show for anyone who remembers the 70s and will run on the Belgrade Main stage from Tues 15 - Sat 19 Mar.

Taking up the role of 'Jackie' is stage and screen actress Janet Dibley. Janet became a household name in the 1980s, co-starring with Nicholas Lyndhurst in ITV's primetime The Two of Us, playing 'Elaine Walker' for all four series. She went on to star as 'Lorna Cartwright' in EastEnders, Carol McGarry in four series of Kay Mellor's Fat Friends, 'Deborah Johnson' in The Chase and most recently as 'Chaz Moore', in Broadchurch.

She will be joined by Olivier Award nominee Graham Bickley (Ragtime, Bread) as John and Nicholas Bailey, best known for his role as 'Anthony Trueman' in EastEnders in the role of Max. Graham Bickley became a household name playing 'Joey Boswell' in Carla Lane's much loved BBC TV series Bread. He has starred in a host of hit West End musicals, including LES MISERABLES, Miss Saigon, Sunset Boulevard and Ragtime, for which received an Olivier Award nomination. He regularly appears with the BBC Concert Orchestra and in concert halls across the country.

Looking ahead to April, Irish songstress Linda Nolan stars alongside Eastenders' favourite Cheryl Fergison in the hilarious musical parody, Menopause The Musical from Thurs 21 - Sat 23 April. Staged to classic tunes from the '60s, '70s and '80s, millions of women worldwide have been laughing about for 14 years!

Set in a department store, four women with seemingly nothing in common but a black lace bra on sale, come to find they have more to share than ever imagined. The cast makes fun of their woeful hot flashes, forgetfulness, mood swings, wrinkles, night sweats and chocolate binges. A sisterhood is created between these diverse women as they realize that menopause is no longer The Silent Passage, but a stage in every woman's life that is perfectly normal!

The above casting follows the previously announced tours of Tell Me On A Sunday starring Jodie Prenger and a new stage adaptation of Peter James' multi-million selling novel, The Perfect Murder starring Eastenders' favourites Jessie Wallace and Shane Ritchie, running on the Main Stage from Tues 29 March - Sat 2 April.

Tickets for all of the above shows are now on sale. For tickets, call the Belgrade Theatre Box Office on 024 7655 3055 or visit the website www.belgrade.co.uk where cheaper tickets are available.

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