Billy Elliot announces full UK and Ireland tour dates

Full tour dates and venues have been announced for the first UK and Ireland tour of Billy Elliot – The Musical.

The award-winning musical is due to begin its tour in Plymouth in February 2016 before visiting a further nine venues.

Producer Eric Fellner said today: "Having recently celebrated ten extraordinary years of Billy Elliot the Musical in London, we are delighted to have the opportunity to bring a new touring production of this inspiring show to fans across the UK and Ireland and the chance to delight new audiences along the way."

The show, adapted by the same creative team behind the hit 2000 film, is set in a northern mining town against the background of the 1984/'85 miners' strike. Billy's journey takes him out of the boxing ring and into a ballet class where he discovers a passion for dance that inspires his family and whole community and changes his life forever.

Billy Elliot the Musical will open at the Theatre Royal Plymouth (24 February to Saturday 2 April 2016) before visiting Sunderland Empire (6 to 30 April), Bradford Alhambra (10 May to 11 June), Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff (14 June to 16 July), Dublin Bord Gáis Energy Theatre (26 July to 3 September), Edinburgh Playhouse (20 September to 22 October), Bristol Hippodrome (25 October to 26 November), Manchester Palace Theatre (29 November 2016 to 28 January 2017), Southampton Mayflower (7 February to 4 March) and finishing at Birmingham Hippodrome (7 March to 6 May).