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This post has nothing much to do with Spamalot Theatre Breaks at all really, it’s just an excuse to alert readers to the new Monty Python YouTube channel by including an excellent promotional video.

But if you are interested in Spamalot Theatre Breaks in London you do need to act soon because the show is going on the road around Britain after January 3rd which is the date of the last performance in London. ( The Palace Theatre comes back to life in March when Priscilla Queen of The Desert kicks off)

Spamalot fans should please note that Sanjeev Bhaskar will not be performing as King Arthur on the 24th & 26th December 2008 and Nina Soderquist will not be in the part of Lady of The Lake during the week from the 22nd to the 27th December 2008

Right, here’s the video:

Click here to view the embedded video.

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Spamalot with free Hotel Offer

Hailed as “Funnier than the Black Death” what can you say about Monty Python’s Spamalot musical except Ni! I’ll just repeat that for the benefit of our older readers who are getting a little bit hard of hearing: WHAT CAN YOU SAY ABOUT MONTY PYTHON’S SPAMALOT EXCEPT oh never mind. Tell them about the free hotel offer. What free hotel offer? The one where you really have to pay £4,000? No, it’s not just the name of the shop, this really is a free hotel. You can doing anything you like when you stay there – within the bounds of British decency of course.

You book your top tickets for Spamalot midweek in August or early September and get an overnight stay in a three star London hotel inclusive with the theatre tickets. So the overall price can be as little as £55 per person. For an extra £10 it may be possible to upgrade to a four star hotel which is more likely to have a shrubbery and such things. Actually some of the three star hotels might have shrubberies as well, so it’s probably best to check at reception on your way out to the show so that everything can be all laid out waiting for you when you get back. One word of warning for when you are inside the theatre though, watch out for the funniest joke on earth. It’s a killer, as in fatal. Keep your ears well covered during that part and you should get out alive.

For more details, read the London Hotel Deals page here at London theatre breaks or else head straight on over to book now.

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Free London Hotel Deals

The summer sale at Show and Stay continues with the craziest London hotel deals for August. They are actually giving away one night’s stay in a posh London hotel for absolutely nothing! I don’t know how they can do it, its just mad. The only snag is that you have to sit through an entire performance at one of the West End’s top musicals. Better choose wisely then!

The Deal

It’s your chance to spend a free night in a three star London hotel after a great night out, just by buying theatre tickets for a weekday (yes, that includes Friday nights) in August 2008 out of a range of eleven of the best West End musicals or two plays (see below). In fact the offer extends right up until Friday 5th of September so this could also be very interesting to those who live just close enough to London to get home after a night out, but would relish the opportunity to stay over and do something in London the next day. You could turn an enjoyable evening at the theatre into an unforgettable city break for as little as £42.50 per person. That price would be for two people seeing The 39 Steps and then sharing a double room at the Jury’s Inn Islington.

The Hotels

You can stay in a 3* hotel from amongst the prestigious list available at Show and Stay. Some of these are closer to Theatreland whilst others are in the popular South Kensington area – it’s up to you. Or you could upgrade to a luxurious Four Star Hotel for as little as ten pounds. What?!? Ten pounds is just ridiculous, I mean you probably couldn’t get a dingy bed and breakfast in drizzly Morecombe for that price! We’re talking about prestigious international style Hotels in central London, where the jet set business community stay over and celebrities hang out.

The shows

These are the popular shows included in the free london hotel offer, together with the total inclusive show and hotel deal price per person (including a £5 supplement for the first three shows listed)

• We Will Rock You – £60 Rock On! book
• The Sound of Music – £60 book
• Billy Elliot – £65 book
• Never Forget – £54.50 Take That! book
• Chicago – £52.50 book
• Spamalot – £55 Monty Python’s hit comedy musical book
• Blood Brothers – £50 book
• Female of the Species – £47.50 *comedy book
• Marguerite – £60 book *recommended classy new musical at the Haymarket
• The 39 Steps – £42.50 book
• Buddy – £55 Rave on book
• Zorro – £55 book *recommended for the fantastic flamenco music and special effects
• Stomp – £45 book

Click on any of the shows above for more information or here to transfer to the special page on the booking site. All you have to do to get the free London hotel deals is to keep within the 13 qualifying shows, choose a weekday before September 7th 2008 and then pick one of the first hotels that comes up, with the golden “offer hotel” badge. then start looking forward to your best ever summer theatre break in London. Have a good one.

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Spamalot cast news – Comedian Sanjeev Bhaskar will be playing King Arthur as of June 23rd. Sanjeev, one of the stars of The Kumars at No. 42 and Goodness Gracious Me, takes over from Alan Dale.

Sanjeev is married to co-star, comedienne and writer Myra Sayal. As far as I can find this will be his first West End role. I think he’s a great choice and he will bring his own unique style to the final months of Spamalot.

Spamalot looks set to close on January 3, 2009, but will go on a UK tour in April.

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Britney Spears was mentioned in the lyrics of the Diva’s Lament, sung by the Lady of the Lake. The lyric suggested that the actress playing the Lady was insulted at the thought of being replaced by Spears. It’s not exactly vicious, or really mean about Spears. Still now it’s been changed to Posh Spice – I suppose she’s seen as fair game.

Eric Idle said Tuesday in an e-mail:

“Because we don’t laugh at sad people. Mike Nichols (the show’s director) requested it and he’s right. We changed the lyrics in London, on tour, on Broadway and in Las Vegas. We think that it’s now too sad. Britney Spears is being tortured to death and we don’t want to be on that side.”

Hmm, the Pythons never flinched at poking fun at public figures in the past. I think it’s all a bit strange, what with the part being played by someone who won it in a reality TV contest and all! But that’s the West End for you at the moment.

(Source: Associated Press)

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Nina Soderquist has won the chance to appear as the next Lady of the Lake in the London production of Spamalot. Nina, a lieutenant in the Swedish army, who has never performed in a musical before, won the Swedish reality TV show West End Star.

She gained received 59% of the public vote during the live final on Saturday, just beating her rival Linda Holmgren.

She will give her first performance in the leading lady role at the Palace Theatre on February 11.

She said:

“I am so happy to have won West End Star – for a second I thought I was actually going to die on live TV. It’s a dream come true. I can’t quite believe I will be Spamalot’s new Lady of the Lake. Before I entered West End Star, I had never sung a song from a musical. I had only ever seen one musical my life, Cats, as a teenager on a school trip to London.
My family and friends will be here for opening night and hopefully all the TV viewers who voted for me will follow soon after.”

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theatre breaks advance bookings

If you book theatre breaks in advance, there is always the chance that a star you particularly want to see won’t be playing the part any more. You can mitigate against by keeping an eye out on theatre news sources such as this London Theatre blog to get advance warning before you book a theatre break, but cast changes can also be no bad thing. They provide a great excuse to go and see a favourite show for a second or subsequent time and compare performances. Spamalot is a favourite theatre break show and here is the latest news:

Cast Changes at Spamalot

Some interesting cast exchanges are happening to Monty Python’s smash musical Spamalot this month. Currently playing Lady of the Lake on Broadway, Marin Mazzie, is joining the London cast from January 14th. The current West End Lady of the Lake, Hannah Waddingham, will join the Broadway production on Jan. 18. Other stars of the West End company currently include Peter Davison, Robert Hands, Steven Kynman, Graham MacDuff, Andrew Spillett, Tony Timberlake and Bill Ward.

Mazzie is a genuine Broadway star and has received Tony Award nominations for her roles in Ragtime, Passion and Kiss Me, Kate.

Waddingham was nominated for a Laurence Olivier Award for her role in the London production of Spamalot. Her face will be familiar to TV addicts from the hit series Footballer’s Wives.

Spamalot story

The musical tells the tale of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table on their quest from God for the Holy Grail – with a short stop in the dazzling Spam-filled land of Camelot.

The book is by Eric Idle and is loosely based on a screenplay he co-wrote with Monty Python creators Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones and Michael Palin. The show’s score includes songs “Brave Sir Robin” and “Knights of the Round Table” from the film as well as the Python signature “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life.”

Spamalot video

Opinions vary as to whether viewing videos beforehand contributes or detracts from the pleasure of theatre breaks. I’ll let you decide whether or not to play this backstage look at Spamalot

Click here to view the embedded video.

theatre breaks

Now that Spamalot is booking until 27 September 2008 it’s possible to plan theatre breaks for birthdays, anniversaries or just for a fun weekend in spring or summer in London. Midweek theatre breaks may also provide the best seats and hotel bargains.

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