london theatre

London’s Theatreland, found in the heart of the city’s West End is the perfect place to enjoy some internationally renowned theatre. From dramas to musicals and from ballet to opera, the West End is a tourist attraction to people from all over the world. For English speaking countries, the West End of London is a high point in theatre – a place where actors will arrive at the peak of the career and return time and time again.

Millions of people visit West End Shows every year, providing enormous incentive for some shows to remain for many years, from Mousetrap to The Phantom of the Opera, Les Miserables and Blood Brothers – all of these productions are now familiar sights in London, becoming mainstays of the theatre scene and becoming household names for their longevity.

For example, Agatha Christie’s Mousetrap has been in London now for 52 years, 34 of which have been at St Martins Theatre on West Street. It is a play that has been captivating audiences consistently and every year the cast is replaced, meaning that it has managed to stay fresh and new even after all of these years. There is also a surprise ending that they have managed to keep under wraps all of this time. So by visiting this show you are bound to be asked to keep the ending you witness a secret…allowing the show to remain a mystery and keep firmly on the stage for another half a century.

Like many London theatres, St Martins has been around for some time. Though it does not date back to the Victorian times like some of them, it has still been a staple of London since 1916 when it opened after many years of planning and delays (caused by the First World War).

The long history of many of the venues in the West End allows the theatres to share many attributes and histories, with many being designed by the same architect. St Martins was designed by the well known architect W G R Sprague whose other credits include The New Ambassadors Theatre and The Queen’s Theatre. Not even he could have predicted that many of his great works would remain to this day and host world famous productions.

So get your theatre tickets today for a great theatre break in London’s West End.