More details about The National Lottery’s Big Night of Musicals

The National Lottery’s Big Night of Musicals will be broadcast on BBC1 on Saturday 25 March 2023 at 7.50pm. For a second year, the event was held at the AO Arena, Manchester.

The spectacular show features performances from 13 incredible West End and touring musicals under one roof, including Hamilton, We Will Rock You The Musical, Wicked, Matilda The Musical, Disney’s Newsies, Shrek the Musical UK and Ireland tour, Six The Musical, Ain’t Too Proud – The Life and Times Of The Temptations, The Bodyguard The Musical, and Rodgers and Hammerstein’s The King And I.

There will also be a special performance from Aspects of Love, featuring musical theatre star Michael Ball (ahead of the forthcoming West End revival), a celebration of the career of Andrew Lloyd Webber and a look behind the scenes of the Heathers The Musical tour.

You can listen to a two-hour broadcast of the show on BBC Radio 2 at 8pm on Sunday 26 March 2023, hosted by Layton Williams and Samantha Barks, featuring exclusive backstage access and interviews with the stars taking part on the night. The programme will also be available on BBC Sounds for 30 days after the broadcast.

The National Lottery describes the Big Night of Musicals as a “thank you to our players”, but also “an opportunity to shine a light on the magic of the performing arts and champion the power of theatre at a time when the sector is navigating its recovery from Covid and through the current challenging times”.

The live version of the event was held on 27 February 2023 2023. Speaking prior to the live event, host Jason Manford said: “I’m thrilled to be back hosting The National Lottery’s Big Night of Musicals for another year! It was incredible to see so many amazing shows under one roof last year and with completely different shows set to perform this year, it’s guaranteed to be another cracker of a night!”

Suzy Klein, head of arts and classical music TV, added: “Following on from the huge success of the first musicals celebration last year, I’m delighted the BBC is able to bring another great night showcasing the very best of performance arts and British theatre, straight to viewers in the comfort of their own homes.”

Helen Thomas, head of BBC Radio 2, continued: “The Radio 2 listeners love musicals and the stars who light up the stage with their amazing performances, so we’re delighted to be broadcasting Big Night of Musicals again this year and going behind the scenes to bring all the gossip from backstage!”