“Paddington The Musical” was the big winner at London’s Olivier Awards on Sunday, collecting seven trophies including best new musical, as the West End’s post-pandemic return continued to draw crowds at the Royal Albert Hall. The homegrown production, based on Michael Bond’s stories about a duffel-coated bear seeking a new home in London, was written by playwright Jessica Swale and songwriter Tom Fletcher of McFly.
The musical’s Olivier wins included the best actor in a musical award, which went jointly to James Hameed and Arti Shah for playing the role together. Hameed provided the voice and remote puppetry, while Shah—described as the first woman to win a best-actor Olivier—performed as the bear onstage, with the costume work tied directly to the character.
In his comments after the awards, Hameed urged audiences to embrace the story’s message of welcoming immigrants and strangers, saying, “Paddington reminds us to be welcoming, inquisitive and most importantly, kind.” The show also took prizes for supporting performers, with Tom Edden and Victoria Hamilton-Barritt winning in the supporting performer categories, alongside awards for director Luke Sheppard and for both set and costume design.
Sheppard hinted that the staging could travel beyond London, saying backstage that it “could one day be Broadway-bound,” adding, “It would be a dream for Paddington to pack his suitcase and visit some other cities around the world.” He said, “So watch this space.”
Outside the musical categories, Rachel Zegler won best actress in a musical for her starring role in “Evita,” performing “Don’t Cry For Me, Argentina” from an exterior balcony while theatergoers inside watched on screens as crowds gathered on the street each night. Another production of Stephen Sondheim’s “Into the Woods,” described as a much-praised revival, won best musical revival and also took a second award for lighting.
In the nonmusical categories, Rosamund Pike was named best actress for “Inter Alia,” where she plays a judge forced to question the justice system and her own ethics. She said taking on the one-woman show—described as her first stage play in 14 years—was an “exhilarating risk,” while Jack Holden took best actor for multiple roles in “Kenrex,” a small-town murder mystery.
Other Olivier honors included “All My Sons” being named best revival, with Paapa Essiedu winning best supporting actor for Arthur Miller’s drama, and Julie Hesmondhalgh winning best supporting actress for “Punch.” The theater awards also recognized “Punch” as best new play, portraying it as a true-life crime and redemption story that had a Broadway run last year; playwright James Graham said it was “one of the honors of my life” to dramatize Jacob Dunne’s story, and he was joined onstage by Dunne and the victim’s mother, Joan Scourfield.
Organizers said the ceremony marked two significant anniversaries: the Olivier Awards were founded in 1976 and named after Laurence Olivier, and Sunday’s event was the 50th edition, hosted by “Ted Lasso” star Nick Mohammed at the Royal Albert Hall. The ceremony included performances tied to 40 years of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “Phantom of the Opera” and 20 years of “Wicked” in the West End, and Elaine Paige received the Special Award.
The upbeat tone reflected what the Society of London Theatre has described as a strong post-pandemic return, saying ticket sales in the West End surpassed pre-COVID-19 levels, with shows attracting 17.6 million visitors in 2025—3 million more than Broadway. Even so, the society warned that rising ticket prices and soaring production budgets remain concerns, driven by higher costs for labor, materials and energy, saying, “Theaters are busier than ever, but many are operating with far less financial headroom.”