Paddington is the best British family musical of the twenty-first century so far.
I thought long and hard before saying that. Yet it was exactly how I felt as I floated out of the Savoy Theatre on Monday evening—on a cloud of joy, buoyed, charmed, and utterly in love with what I’d experienced over the previous two and a half hours.
So much so that I decided I’d better sleep on it, just in case the magic faded overnight.
It didn’t.
What Tom Fletcher (music & lyrics) and Jessica Swale (book, after Michael Bond and the screenwriters of the first Paddington film) have achieved is the creation of a tale brought vibrantly to life by an army of top-tier theatre makers. Together, they’ve crafted a theatrical experience rarely seen since Phantom.
The sets, costumes, special effects, choreography, and Luke Sheppard’s direction all work in glorious harmony toward one aim: to make us fall head over heels for that little Peruvian bear. Count me smitten.
I’m sure I’m not giving away any serious spoilers by saying the bear is in fact two performers: James Hameed, who sings the role gorgeously, and a rotating body double in the Paddington suit (Abbie Purvis), who gives him physical life on stage. Thanks to the ingenuity of Tahra Zafar’s creative work, Paddington feels utterly real.
But the masterstroke lies in how the show binds these two performers into one soul.
Because Paddington isn’t just about a cuddly bear arriving in London. It’s a show joyfully proclaiming the vital contributions immigrants make to our society. In doing so, it may well be the most politically aware and important piece of theatre currently running in the West End.
So, what about the show itself? Fletcher’s music is tuneful where it needs to be, and his lyrics frequently sparkle with wit. His company number “The Rhythm of London” is an instant standard, while Act Two’s opener, “Marmalade,” is an earworm that’s lodged itself firmly in my brain.
My favourite, though, is “Pretty Little Dead Things,” sung by Victoria Hamilton-Barritt, who devours the scenery as Millicent Clyde, the villainous taxidermist. Awards will follow her, I’ve no doubt.
Close behind are Tom Edden’s gloriously pitiable Mr Curry and Amy Booth-Steel’s Lady Sloane of the Geographer’s Guild, whose vowel gymnastics are a comic delight.
But none of this would land without Jessica Swale’s exemplary book. It is concise, hilarious, moving, unobtrusive, and true to the source material. It is everything the book for Matilda should have been—but wasn’t.
The cast is gloriously large and includes Bonnie Langford as Mrs Bird; Adrian Der Gregorian as Mr Brown, whose marriage Paddington inadvertently helps mend; Amy Ellen Richardson as the long-suffering Mrs Brown; and Teddy Kempner as Mr Gruber, whose shop frames the story.
In truth, I’ve spent time trying to find faults. Act Two’s ending could perhaps be tightened—but otherwise, nothing.
I love this show. Not only for its impeccable execution, but for its message: In London, everyone is different. And that means anyone can fit in. A message that, in times like these, cannot be repeated often enough.
Paddington is, as near as dammit, the perfect family musical. Go see.
Director: Luke Sheppard
Book: Jessica Swale
Music, & Lyrics: Tom Fletcher
Cast includes: James Hameed, Abbie Purvis, Victoria Hamilton-Barritt, Teddy Kempner, Bonnie Langford, Amy Booth-Steel, Adrian Der Gregorian, Amy Ellen Richardson, Ben Redfern, and full supporting cast
Dates: Booking to 26th October 2026
Running time: 2hrs 30 including 1 x 15 minute interval
Date Seen: Monday 1st December 2025
Photo credit: Johan Persson