Paddington The Musical wins seven Olivier Awards

The Olivier Awards took place tonight, 12 April, and Paddington The Musical scooped seven awards – the most of any new musical.

Musicals led the way this year, with a largely two-way race between Paddington The Musical and Into The Woods, both of which received 11 nominations

At this year’s annual celebration, the new British musical by Jessica Swale and Tom Fletcher left with seven trophies, including the coveted Cunard Best New Musical.

The stage adaptation is directed by Luke Sheppard, who won that category.

Notably, in the Costume Design category, both Gabriella Slade (who designed the costumes) and Tahra Zafar (who designed the bear) were jointly awarded for the category. The same applies in the Best Set Design category, where Tom Pye (set design) and Ash J Woodward (video design) were winners.

Another dynamic duo making headlines is, of course, the two performers who bring Paddington Bear to life, Arti Shah and James Hameed, who were jointly commended in the Best Actor in a Musical category. It feels like a precedent has been set following the win of the multiple actors who played the tiger Richard Parker in Life of Pi, with the onus being on the gender of the character.

It wasn’t only the bear whose performance has been applauded in Paddington The Musical’s comedy pairing; Tom Edden and Amy Booth-Steel, both received nominations, as did the villainous Millicent Clyde, Victoria Hamilton-Barritt, with Edden and Hamilton-Barritt ultimately winning.

The show, which plays in the West End at the Savoy Theatre, dominated with nine wins at the WhatsOnStage Awards earlier this year.