Paddington wins record 9 WhatsOnStage awards
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- Paddington won 9 awards at the 26th WhatsOnStage awards, becoming the most awarded new musical in the ceremony's history and joining Harry Potter and the Cursed Child and Miss Saigon as the three most awarded shows overall.
- Evita took 5 awards including best musical revival and best performer for Rachel Zegler, whose off-stage balcony performance of Don't Cry For Me Argentina to street passersby drew particular acclaim.
- Jonathan Bailey won best performer in a play for his Richard II at the Bridge Theatre, beating Ncuti Gatwa, Tom Hiddleston, and Rosamund Pike; the production also claimed best play revival.
- Les Misérables won best West End show in its 40th anniversary year, James Graham received the services to UK theatre award, and Stephen Fry took best supporting performer in a play for The Importance of Being Earnest.
- WhatsOnStage introduced its inaugural best child performance category, won by Platon Filatov, Darcy Tosun, Anton Vehring, and Artie Wilkinson-Hunt for sharing the role of Young Thomas in The Land of the Living at the National Theatre.
- The Guardian's Arifa Akbar called Paddington "the new Mary Poppins," praising its state-of-the-art animatronics and "marvellous songs about marmalade."
Why it matters: WhatsOnStage awards are voted entirely by paying theatregoers — not critics or industry insiders — so Paddington's record haul signals overwhelming audience demand for a family-friendly, effects-driven musical. With Evita and the 40-year-old Les Misérables also dominating, the results point to a West End market rewarding both nostalgia and accessible new IP.
