Strictly's Johannes Radebe to make West End debut as Kinky Boots' drag queen
The show follows the story of Charlie Price, who inherits his family's failing shoe factory and develops a line of high-heeled boots after meeting cabaret performer Lola.
In 2021, Radebe reached the Strictly final with Bake Off star John Whaite, who were the first all-male couple on the show, and was paired last year with BBC Gladiators star Montell Douglas.
Radebe said: 'I left my township in Zamdela at the age of 21 to dance in the ensemble on a cruise ship.
'Every night we did Abba. That was my dream come true.
'Never then, nor since then, was it in my wildest dreams that I would have the opportunity to star in a musical in London's West End.
'And not just any musical, my favourite musical – Kinky Boots.
'My involvement in Kinky Boots has been six years in the making, and Lola was the only role I ever wanted to play.'
'The theatre community has welcomed me, and I am having the time of my life,' he added.
Composer and lyricist of the show, pop star Cyndi Lauper said: 'I'm so thrilled that Kinky Boots is returning home to London.
'When audiences leave the show, they feel happy and uplifted, and that's something the world could really use right now.
'It's so wonderful that this musical keeps bringing joy and acceptance to people around the world.'
The London production will run for 17 weeks from March 17 to July 11 2026, and tickets will go on sale on July 15 this year.
The show is currently touring the UK and Ireland.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mirror
an hour ago
- Daily Mirror
American visits Poundland for first time and is floored by 'unexpected' discovery
YouTuber The Magic Geekdom visited a Poundland store for the first time and she was blown away by the size of one department as she exclaimed she was "not expecting" it An American YouTube star visited Poundland for the first time and was left stunned by the products on offer in one department. Cara, who runs t he Magic Geekdom channel which boasts more than 77,000 subscribers, and she updates her followers on her travels around the UK. One British tradition she had yet to experience was a visit to iconic high street budget store Poundland, but that changed as she updated her fans in her latest video. It was the size of the clothes department that really shocked Cara as she compared it to a similar US chain called Dollar Tree. She said: "I've never actually gone shopping in a Poundland. There's a whole clothing department I was not expecting. I feel like in the US our Dollar Trees do not have this many clothes. "I was not expecting a whole section of clothes, like this is huge. Do you see this? This whole clothing section is giving Primark. I'm just curious. I don't think I'm going to buy anything but I did see some slippers I thought were cute. It's so loud in here." Poundland was founded in 1990 and now boast more than 800 stores. The YouTuber spent a significant amount of time in the budget store, perusing the aisles as she compared the products on offer to what one might expect to find in a Dollar Tree store in the USA. Cara added: "I don't know, I'm going to say, and granted a dollar costs less than a pound. I mean a pound is worth more than a dollar. "These seem like better quality things than you would find at the dollar tree in the US. I think you would be hard pressed to find a set of kitchen utensils for that cheap in the US. The sign says there are over 1,500 items that are a pound or less. "They do have a little bit of everything here don't they. The car station area, they've got a bike pump." In another video, Cara claimed she had discovered the UK's 'most overlooked city' as a visit there left her stunned. She could not contain her excitement when she went to Leeds. She expressed her surprise at the beauty of the city, highlighting Leeds City Museum as a prime example of the city's allure. The YouTuber said: "This was my very first time in Leeds and it completely blew me away! I didn't know much about the city going in, but after a full day exploring its stunning arcades, fascinating museums, delicious food spots, and lively streets, I can honestly say Leeds is one of the most overlooked cities I've visited so far in the UK. "From beautiful architecture to incredible markets and independent shops, this city has so much to offer."
Daily Record
2 hours ago
- Daily Record
Netflix adds 'must watch' British TV comedy hailed as 'brilliant' by viewers
The ITV sitcom first streamed on ITV2 with fans already calling for Netflix to make the fifth series available Netflix has recently added a new British TV comedy show, with viewers already raving about the "brilliant" programme. The show has left many in stitches, and been labelled as a must-watch for comedy buffs. Plebs, which originated on ITV, has been praised by viewers as the "funniest British TV comedy ever made" as people rush to binge-watch it. The programme is currently sitting in third place on Netflix's top 10 ranking of most popular television shows. The ITV sitcom has a total of five series to binge, however only the first four are currently on Netflix. Fans have already called for the fifth series to be added. Plebs became a hit on ITV2 when it aired, with surprise guest stars that included the likes of Danny Dyer as Cassius the Gladiator. The show concluded in 2022 with a special feature-length Christmas episode, which saw the boys enlist in the army during peace time, before war broke out, sending them to the front line to fight for a cause they did not believe in. Fans have already taken to google to leave good reviews, with one person describing it as "the funniest, most brilliantly written comedy ever made". They added: "It's frustrating that it feels totally underrated. The characters are all so funny in their own right and the stories in each episode are final feature length film had us in tears as well as in stitches! Brilliant!! We will miss it so much!!" Someone else echoed: "Just finished binge watching the whole show and I loved it! Hate I found it so late in the game. It's a must watch!" "I've watched every episode of this," wrote another fan. "I think it's brilliant. Clever how it's an ancient setting but modern humour. Hope they make a season 6." The show has been described as a crossover between Horrible Histories and The Inbetweeners, full of juvenile humour which focuses on a group of unfortunate pals living circa 26BC amid the Roman Empire. Plebs follows the three unlucky lads, Marcus (Tom Rosenthal), Stylax (Joel Fry) and their house-slave Grumio (Ryan Sampson) as they take on the big city of Rome. Aside from all the chaos and hilarity throughout, you could also learn a thing or two about the ancient Romans. The show takes its history seriously, with esteemed historian Mary Beard said to be credited as an adviser on the show. However not everyone had glowing reviews, as some felt the show lost its spark by time the fourth series came along. One person wrote: "Excellent show! Belly laughs through the first three series'. Fell flat in the fourth series. Replacing the charm of Stylax with the horrible smarm of Jason was a huge huge mistake." "Its bonkers and there are some moments where it's far too reliant on second hand embarrasment, but it's still a good laugh and still quite a novel concept," another wrote.
Leader Live
5 hours ago
- Leader Live
YouTube star and EastEnders actress among first batch of Strictly contestants
The popular BBC dancing show, hosted by Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly, will return to TV screens in September with a new host of famous faces competing each week to win the glitterball trophy. Podcast host and YouTube star George Clarke was announced as the sixth celebrity contestant on Tuesday during BBC Radio 1's Going Home drivetime show. Clarke, also known as George Clarkey, said: 'Never thought I'd say this … but I'm doing Strictly! Honestly, I've got no idea what I'm doing but I'm excited to get stuck in … and potentially fall over a fair bit.' It comes after EastEnders actress Balvinder Sopal was revealed as a contestant during a segment filmed live from Albert Square on ITV's Good Morning Britain (GMB). She said that 'being on Strictly is a dream that I held on to, with no proof that it would ever happen'. The other stars confirmed to be competing are Love Island winner Dani Dyer, Gladiators star Harry Aikines-Aryeetey, Doctor Who actress Alex Kingston and former footballer Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink. Speaking on The One Show after her reveal, Dyer, who is the daughter of actor Danny Dyer, said: 'It's such a fun magical show – to be asked to do it is such an honour. 'I just can't wait to be able to wear (the costumes) – it's going to be so much fun.' A post shared by BBC Strictly (@bbcstrictly) Former Chelsea footballer Hasselbaink said: 'I'm a father of only girls and Strictly is a part of our home life – I like the show. Let's have a go.' Actress Kingston, who interrupted her holiday in Italy to speak to hosts Alex Scott and Roman Kemp, joked: 'I was super excited but now I'm terrified.' Aikines-Aryeetey, known as Nitro on the rebooted Gladiators, previously competed in last year's Strictly Christmas Special and described his decision to return on Monday as 'so nice I just had to do it twice'. In July, the BBC announced that two 'incredible' new professional dancers, US-born Alexis Warr and Australian dancer Julian Caillon, would be joining the show. Daly and Winkleman will return as presenters with Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse, Anton Du Beke and Shirley Ballas on the judges' table. Strictly will return to BBC One and BBC iPlayer this September.
