Sting discusses his upcoming West End debut and The Last Ship musical’s voyage to London

Recently, WhatsOnStage had the opportunity to sit down with music industry icon Sting at Theatre Royal Drury Lane, where he is scheduled to make his West End debut this autumn.

Set to reprise the role of Jackie White – which he first portrayed on Broadway in 2014 and has since revisited in Amsterdam, Brisbane and Paris – in his musical The Last Ship (now featuring a new book by Barney Norris), Sting will appear on stage in London from 22 September to 3 October 2026.

Alongside acoustic renditions of some of the numbers from the show, Sting spoke candidly about the show’s roots and long voyage to the West End, and whether he would ever consider writing another musical.

You can watch all the highlights below:

Inspired by Sting’s upbringing in the shipbuilding town of Wallsend and drawing on themes first explored in his 1991 album The Soul Cages, The Last Ship follows a community facing the closure of their local shipyard. Sting will play Jackie White, the shipyard foreman attempting to guide the workforce through the crisis while dealing with his own declining health.

Songs featured in the musical include “Island of Souls”, “All This Time” and “When We Dance”, performed by a company of more than 50 performers, as well as newly written numbers.

Produced by Karl Sydow, the new staging is directed by Leo Warner, with set and video design by 59, a Journey studio. The creative team also includes set and props designer Jenny Melville, costume designer Loren Elstein, lighting designer Adam Bassett, sound designer Tom Gibbons, animation director Matt Taylor, choreographer Rebecca Howell, video designer Benjamin Pearcy, musical supervisor and orchestrator Rob Mathes, and musical director and co-orchestrator Richard John.

Tickets are on sale below.