Famous Faces Who Have Tread The Theatre Royal Boards

Many famous faces have graced the boards of this beautiful Regency theatre.

Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds has been one of the main sources of entertainment in Bury St Edmunds since it was built in 1819 and was once the talk of England during the 1800’s influencing people like Charles Dickens and Sir Peter Hall!

We take a look at 16 famous faces that have graced the boards of this beautiful Regency theatre and love to perform in the intimate space inspired by the ancient amphitheatre in Taormina, Greece.

1. Ardal O’Hanlon visited the Theatre in 2007 as part of his stand up tour, Blessed.

2. Christopher Biggins and Lesley Joseph visited the theatre in 2021 for a special event when the theatre reopened after lockdown.

3. Dame Janet Suzman hosted one of the theatre’s An Evening With… events in 2018, chatting to Libby Purves.

4. Dame Judi Dench returned to the stage of the Theatre Royal in May 2022 for a fundraising evening for the theatre ,her second appearance on the Regency Stage.

5. Sir Derick Jacobi originally performed at Theatre Royal in the 1970’s and became a key supporter of the theatre’s restoration between 2005-2007. More recently Sir Derek visited Theatre Royal for two fundraising evenings.

Photo: Robert Wilson

6. Dev Patel filmed on Theatre Royal’s stage for the film The Personal History of David Copperfield which also used other locations in Bury St Edmunds.

7. Dylan Moran toured his stand-up show We Got This in 2022.

8. Gyles Brandreth appeared at Theatre Royal in 2018 for An Evening With… in aid of the Theatre.

9. Jenny Éclair visited the theatre as part of her Sixty! (FFS) tour or the UK and Ireland.

10. Joanna Lumley come to Theatre Royal in 2012 for a special VIP reception.

The Personal History of David Copperfield Theatre Royal Dean Rogers courtesy of Lionsgate UK 965x540

Photo: Dean Rogers, courtesy of Lionsgate UK

11. John Simpson, BBC World Affairs Editor, came to Theatre Royal for a special event, talking about his career and experiences in 2013.

12. Julian Clary visited Theatre Royal as part of his stand-up tour Born To Mince in 2019.

13. Kiki Dee performed a number of her songs with her partner, Camelo Luggeri, in 2018.

14. Lesley Garrett spent an evening at Theatre Royal in 2016 talking about her career and giving snippets of music throughout.

15. Maureen Lipmann was part of a special event for Theatre Royal in 2017: An Evening With…

16. Michael McIntyre performed at Theatre Royal in 2021 after the Theatre re-opened after lockdown. Its’ safe to say his performance went down a storm.

To find out what's on at the theatre visit the Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds website.