Dinnerladies Live Tour
Victoria Wood's Beloved Dinnerladies Stage Adaptation Featuring Les Dennis Announces 2027 UK Tour Dates
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Key Points
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The production will open at the Churchill Theatre in Bromley with shows on January 22 and 23, before transferring to Manchester's Opera House for a run from January 26 to February 6.
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The show is now scheduled for 2027, marking the Victoria Wood Estate's first commissioned stage work, with a UK tour running through August 2027.
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The new stage version is set in the canteen of the fictional Manchester factory HWD Components, preserving the original workplace setting of the sitcom.
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Creative team details include Beth and Emma Kilcoyne adapting the script and Sean Foley directing; Foley has previously directed stage adaptations of Dr Strangelove and Withnail & I.
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The Victoria Wood Estate publicly endorses the project as a return of Victoria Wood’s beloved classic to the nation and notes it is the estate’s first commissioned stage work.
Victoria Wood's beloved sitcom Dinnerladies is returning — this time on stage. The Victoria Wood Estate has commissioned a brand new stage adaptation, marking the first time the estate has greenlit a theatrical work based on Wood's material, according to WhatsOnStage. The show will open at Bromley's Churchill Theatre on January 22, 2027, before heading to Manchester Opera House for a run from January 26 to February 6.
The production will tour UK theatres through August 2027, closing at Southend's Cliffs Pavilion on August 7. Tickets went on early access for select venues on June 29, 2026, with general sale starting July 3, reports Evening Standard.
Les Dennis Joins the HWD Components Canteen Cast
Les Dennis will star as Stan, the factory maintenance man. Dennis has a personal link to the material. "I'm lucky enough to say I knew Victoria — she and I performed on the comedy circuit in the 1970s and were both finalists on New Faces," he told Evening Standard. The show will reintroduce all the original characters: Bren, Tony, Dolly, Anita, Jean, Twinkle, Philippa and Stan.
The stage version is set in the canteen of HWD Components, the fictional Manchester factory from the original BBC One sitcom. Dinnerladies ran from 1998 to 2000 and peaked at 15.3 million viewers, according to Chortle. The show ran for just 16 episodes, all written by Wood herself.
Olivier-Winning Director Leads a Screen-to-Stage Team
Twin sisters Beth and Emma Kilcoyne are adapting the script. They are known for the sitcom Roger and Val Have Just Got In. Double Olivier Award winner Sean Foley will direct. Foley recently staged Dr. Strangelove in 2024 and Withnail and I in 2025, making him a specialist in turning screen classics into live theatre, says The Guardian.
Producers Phil McIntyre Live and Sustainable Entertainment are co-producing the show. The Victoria Wood Estate says the goal is to bring "the joy of Victoria Wood's much-loved classic back to the nation after more than 25 years," according to BBC News.
A High-Stakes Gamble on Nostalgia and Regional Theatres
This is not the first attempt to bring Dinnerladies to the stage. A 2009–2011 tour by David Graham Productions was criticised for feeling like a "cut and paste" job, reports The Wee Review. Critics warned it lacked the organic flow a stage play needs. The new version aims to fix that with a fully original script built for theatre from the ground up.
Industry analysts warn that moving a sitcom to the stage is a financial risk in a tough climate. Theatre energy bills have risen 120% since 2019, according to The Stage. High attendance at each venue will be essential. The tour spans major cities including Liverpool, Birmingham, Cardiff, Leeds and York before closing in Southend.
Wood's Legacy Drives the Estate's First Commissioned Work
Victoria Wood died in April 2016 at the age of 62. Since then, her estate has been protective of her work. This production marks a clear shift. Rather than just archiving her material, the estate is now actively building on it, according to The Independent.
Dinnerladies ranked 28th in the 2004 BBC poll "Britain's Best Sitcom," per Manchester Evening News. The show's appeal cuts across generations. Producers are betting that a demographic who grew up watching Wood in the late 1990s is now ready — and willing — to pay for a night at the theatre to relive it.
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