Well, this is going to be quite the transformation.
The first images of Danny Beard as Lily Savage have been revealed ahead of the world premiere of Savage, a brand-new stage show celebrating Paul O’Grady and the gloriously sharp-tongued creation that made him a household name.
And before London gets anywhere near it, the whole thing is premiering right here in the East Midlands.
Savage will open at Curve in Leicester on February 13, 2027, where it will run until March 6 before heading for the West End.
RuPaul’s Drag Race UK winner Danny Beard takes the title role in a show written by Jonathan Harvey, the man behind Beautiful Thing and Gimme Gimme Gimme, as well as hundreds of episodes of Coronation Street.
Inspired by O’Grady’s life and autobiographies, and created with his blessing before his death in 2023, the production promises to tell the story of the person behind the peroxide wig.
So what’s Savage actually about?
Long before Lily Savage was trading insults with celebrities on prime-time television, Paul O’Grady was performing the character in London’s pubs and clubs.
Savage goes back to the beginning.
It follows O’Grady from his working-class upbringing in Birkenhead to London’s club scene, where a quick wit, a wig and a ferocious alter ego eventually produced one of British entertainment’s most memorable characters.
Lily Savage was outrageous, foul-mouthed, glamorous and completely uninterested in behaving herself. Eventually, the character escaped the clubs and became a mainstream television star, turning O’Grady into one of the country’s best-loved entertainers.
The new show promises plenty of Savage’s trademark one-liners but also looks beneath the character at the life that created her.
There’s another reason this production feels particularly special: O’Grady himself was involved in its early development.
Speaking before his death, he said he was delighted Harvey had agreed to write the show, describing him as “perfect for this” and “such a great writer.”
Harvey, meanwhile, has his own history with Lily Savage. He first saw the character performing in a West London gay bar during the late 1980s.
He said bringing the story to the stage was an honour, adding that while it was sad O’Grady would never see the finished production, he hoped it would be a fitting testament to everything O’Grady achieved and “a cracking night out full of humour and heart”.
Leicester gets the world premiere
That’s the particularly exciting bit for East Midlands theatre fans.
Instead of Leicester simply getting another stop on a national tour, audiences at Curve will be the first anywhere to see Savage.
The world premiere is being directed by Curve artistic director Nikolai Foster, whose recent credits include Kinky Boots, Legally Blonde and The Sound of Music.
Curve bosses describe O’Grady as a “generational talent” and say the production will celebrate both his life and Lily’s extraordinary legacy.
There will also be more casting announcements to come.
Given the combination of O’Grady’s story, Jonathan Harvey’s writing, Danny Beard in that wig and Lily Savage’s formidable collection of one-liners, this could be one of Leicester’s biggest theatre openings of 2027.
And frankly, it’s difficult to imagine Lily being particularly impressed by having to wait for the West End anyway.
When is Savage at Curve Leicester?
Where: Curve, Leicester
When: February 13 to March 6, 2027
Starring: Danny Beard as Lily Savage
Written by: Jonathan Harvey
Director: Nikolai Foster
Tickets: On sale now from Curve
