The Big Night of Musicals is returning to the AO Arena in Manchester – and tickets are FREE

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Jason Manford will host the Big Night of Musicals. Credit: Supplied

Jason Manford will host the Big Night of Musicals. Credit: Supplied

The National Lottery’s Big Night of Musicals will return to the AO Arena in Manchester early next year, with free tickets.

The huge event will be hosted by local comedian Jason Manford, and will bring together jaw-dropping performances from the biggest West End and touring musicals.

Audiences will be treated to hits from shows including Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, A Chorus Line, Moulin Rouge! The Musical, GREASE, Hadestown, and Guys & Dolls.

The massive glittering event will take place on Monday 22 January, to be aired on BBC One, BBC Radio 2 and BBC Sounds at a later date.  

And tickets for The National Lottery’s Big Night of Musicals are completely free – all you need to do is be a National Lottery player.

The 12,000 free tickets will be available on a first-come, first-served basis from 1pm today, Thursday 30 November, at bignightofmusicals.com.

The event has been created to thank National Lottery players, who in the past year have helped support over 750 theatre-related projects across the UK.  

 Jason Manford will be joined by special guest, West End legend and singing sensation, Beverley Knight, who has starred in theatre shows including The Bodyguard, Cats, Memphis, Sylvia, and Sister Act.

Moulin Rouge will be one of the shows in The National Lottery’s Big Night of Musicals. Credit: Marc Brenner

The National Lottery has awarded more than £517m to arts projects across the country, with £46m of this going towards theatre related projects. 

For The National Lottery’s Big Night of Musicals, players will be able to reserve up to four tickets for free, plus a £2 booking fee applies per ticket and proof of purchase of a National Lottery product is required.   

Comedian, musical theatre performer and host Jason Manford said: “I’m thrilled to be hosting The National Lottery’s Big Night of Musicals once again.

“We’ve got another amazing line-up of smash hit shows for the Manchester Arena audience to enjoy.  And the best thing about this show is that the tickets are free! 

“It’s a thank you from The National Lottery to all the people who have supported the performing arts through these crucial years by playing each week.”

Beverley Knight, who also performed in the 2022 launch of The National Lottery’s Big Night of Musicals, said: “It’s great to be coming back to be part of this incredible show. The support National Lottery players make to the theatre industry is crucial to the performers and myriad of people – at large and small venues – who help make a night at the theatre so special.

“I can’t wait to see this astonishing line up of talent in Manchester belting out musical classics.”

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Featured image: Supplied