Casting announced for The Girls by Gary Barlow & Tim Firth

Casting has been announced for Gary Barlow and Tim Firth's musical adaptation of Calender Girls.

Entitled The Girls, the show will star: Debbie Chazen as Ruth, Sara Kestelman as Jessie, Claire Machin as Cora, Claire Moore as Chris, Vivien Parry as Celia, Joanna Riding as Annie and Harriet Thorpe as Marie.

Also in the cast will be Stephen Boswell as Colin, Joe Caffrey as Rod, Jeremy Clyde as Denis, Susan Fay as Brenda, Steve Giles as Lawrence, Richard Huw as John, Shirley Jameson as Miss Wilson, Judith Street as Lady Cravenshire and Karen West as the other Miss Wilson.

Casting announced for The Last of the De Mullins at the Jermyn Street Theatre

It has been announced that Alexandra Dowling, Charlotte Powell, Roberta Taylor and Harriet Thorpe (pictured right) will star in London’s first professional production of St John Hankin’s The Last of the De Mullins for over a century. 

Directed by Joshua Stamp-Simon, the production will open at Jermyn Street Theatre on Thursday 5th February (previews from 3rd February) and run until 28th February 2015.  

Alexandra Dowling, who plays Bertha, can currently be seen on BBC 1 as Queen Anne in The Musketeers. Charlotte Powell (Janet De Mullin) was Harriet Goodcharm in ITV’s The Worst Witch. Roberta Taylor (Mrs De Mullin) is best known for her roles as Inspector Gina Gold in six series of The Bill and Irene Hills in EastEnders. On screen Harriet Thorpe (Mrs Clouston) has played Carole in Brittas Empireand Fleur in Absolutely Fabulous whilst her West End credits include Great Britain, Wicked, Rufus Norris's production of Cabaret, Crazy for You and Mamma Mia.

Big Interview: Harriet Thorpe

Harriet Thorpe is currently starring in the National Theatre’s production of Great Britain by Richard Bean. 

Following a successful premiere at the National’s Lyttelton Theatre, the play has transferred to the Theatre Royal Haymarket in London's West End. Hot on the heels of the phone hacking scandal, Great Britain is described as an “anarchic and foul-mouthed satire about the press, the police and the political establishment".

Harriet was most recently seen reprising her performance of Madame Morrible in the West End production of Wicked (Apollo Victoria). Her musical theatre roles also include: Frauline Kost in Cabaret (Lyric/Savoy/UK Tour), Lottie Child/Patricia Fodor in Crazy For You (Novello/Open Air Theatre), Tanya in Mamma Mia (Prince Of Wales), Mrs Lovett in Sweeney Todd (National Tour) and Madame Thernadier in Les Miserables (Palace).

Just a few of her other countless theatre credits include: Twelfth Night, Cymbeline, Richard III and A Midsummer Night's Dream (all Open Air Theatre), Brighton Rock (Almeida), The Vagina Monologues (Arts), Streetcar To Tennessee (Young Vic), Jackie (Queens) and The Bassett Table (Bristol Old Vic/Tour/Tricycle). Previous work at the National includes: A Prayer For Owen Meany, All My Sons, The Government Inspector, Pravda, Futurists, Jacobowski & The Colonel and Longtime Gone.

On screen Harriet is best known for playing Fleur in Absolutely Fabulous, Carole in The Brittas Empire and, most recently, Lynn in The Secret. She has made numerous appearances in some of the UK’s most popular TV shows and films. 

I recently spoke to Harriet about what makes Great Britain such a thrilling play and why it’s so exciting to be part of something brand new. We also discussed her remarkably varied career and what she used to get up to between performances during her time in Wicked…

You’ve been with Great Britain right from the beginning. What were the early stages like when it was all hush hush?

Well it’s interesting because when you’re in a play one doesn’t really discuss rehearsals anyway because if you are doing a Shakespeare, however thrilling it is for oneself, nobody is really interested in your rehearsals – so not talking about it was quite easy. People just knew I was doing a play, nobody really asked anything else! 

West End Bares announces guest presenters

Organisers of West End Bares ‘Nudedunnit?!’ have announced this year's all-star line up of special guest presenters.

Guest presenters include: Jake Canuso (pictured right), James Dreyfuss, Matt Evers, Jill Halfpenny, Helen Lederer and Harriet Thorpe with further names to be announced. 

The show takes place at Café de Paris Sunday 7th September for two performances only.

Now in its fifth year, West End Bares sees performers from across the heart of London’s West End volunteering to put on a show and strip in aid of The Make A Difference Trust (MAD Trust) - the entertainment industry charity dedicated to helping people living with HIV and AIDS in the UK and Sub-Saharan Africa.

Sneak peek at... Richard Bean's Great Britain

Ahead of tonight's opening of Richard Bean's new play Great Britain, the National Theatre have released the play's production images. Take a look at the pictures below (click image to enlarge). Billie Piper stars in the play which opens without any preview performances and is currently booking at the Lyttelton Theatre until Saturday 23rd August 2014.

Described as a "fast and furious new play", Great Britain is an anarchic satire about the press, the police and the political establishment. Billie Piper plays Paige Britain, ambitious young news editor of The Free Press, a tabloid newspaper locked in a never ending battle for more readers. 

Further casting announced for Cabaret revival

Further casting has been announced for the upcoming revival of Cabaret. It was previously announced that Will Young and Michelle Ryan would lead the cast as the Emcee and Sally Bowles. 

Sian Phillips, Harriet Thorpe and Matt Rawle will also star in the production, which will have a brief UK tour  before opening at the Savoy from 3 October 2012.