Grab a marmalade sandwich and prepare your hard stare because Paddington The Musical is coming to Australia.
The acclaimed theatre production, which has been melting hearts on the West End since 2025, will land in Sydney for an exclusive 10-week run in September 2027. There is as yet no indication whether it will travel on to other Australian cities.
NSW Minister for Jobs and Tourism Steve Kamper said securing the show for Sydney – just the third city to host it after London and New York (where it will also open next year) – was a “fantastic coup”.
Based on Michael Bond’s treasured characters in the 1958 book, A Bear Called Paddington, the musical tells the heartfelt story of a lost bear from Peru who travels to London in the hopes of finding a new home. Many, however, will recognise the adorable, bumbling bear from StudioCanal’s mega-popular three-part film series, the first of which premiered in 2014 and featured Ben Whishaw as the voice of the titular bear and Nicole Kidman as an animal-stuffing villain.
“From the outset, we have wanted Paddington The Musical to open only in cities where it can be produced with the same ambition, care and theatrical scale as in London,” said Paddington co-producers Sonia Friedman and Eliza Lumley. “Paddington’s journey across the world in search of a new home – and his discovery that home can be found through kindness, acceptance and a sense of belonging – feels particularly resonant for Australian audiences.”
The musical features an impressively realistic (and ridiculously adorable) puppet/animatronic bear. Since opening on the West End in November 2025, its endearing characters and gentle humour quickly made it a commercial and critical hit, recording the highest ticket presales in West End history and eventually extending its London run. It has won seven Olivier Awards – the most of any musical in history – including best new musical, best director for Luke Sheppard and best set design.
Next, it will take on Broadway, with its debut at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre set for March – six months before it touches down in Sydney.
Paddington The Musical remains one of the most sought-after theatre productions globally today. Its Sydney run was secured by the Minns government through Destination NSW, and is expected to attract more than 100,000 visitors and inject more than $64 million into the state’s economy.
“I am immensely proud that Sydney will be the first city in Australia to welcome Paddington The Musical,” said Australian producer and Jones Theatrical Group chief executive Suzanne Jones. “It is a rare new musical: spectacular in scale, but always led by character, humour and heart.”
Paddington The Musical will premiere at Sydney’s Capitol Theatre in September 2027. You can join the ticket waitlist here.
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