New Wind in the Willows musical from Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes set for the West End

The show will open in Plymouth before later heading to the West End 
Delighted: Julian Fellowes said he was excited to be working on the new show
Nick Ansell/PA Wire
David Ellis @dvh_ellis2 October 2015

A brand new production of Wind in the Willows written by Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes will make its world premiere in Plymouth next year.

The musical adaptation will open at Plymouth’s Theatre Royal on October 8 and run until October 22, before playing at The Lowry in Salford for 11 days from October 26 . It is then expected to transfer to the West End, though details have yet to be finalised.

The show sourced over £1 million through crowd-funding, which saw 400 individuals donate up to £5000 each.

George Stiles and Anthony Drewe will write the music and lyrics for Lord Fellowes’s take on Kenneth Grahame’s classic children’s novel. The three last worked together on Mary Poppins in 2004, which won two Olivier Awards during its three year run.

Fellowes said: “I could not be more pleased to have been working on this new production of The Wind in the Willows, which has been a favourite of mine literally all my life. It has been a real privilege to be part of the team re-imaging it for the musical stage.”

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Jamie Hendry, who will produce the show, said he will send a copy of the novel to every shool and library in Plymouth and Salford.

He said: “I am a firm believer that our most classic novels should be freely available for everyone to enjoy. I hope that readers will fall in love with Grahame's story as much as I did.”

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