A Claybody Theatre Production in Association with New Vic Theatre
Claybody Theatre in association with New Vic Theatre are delighted to be visiting Harrogate with Arnold Bennett’s rollicking comedy thriller, The Grand Babylon Hotel. The company visit Harrogate Theatre from Wednesday 1 – Saturday 4 April 2026.
Described as “delightfully bonkers”, The Grand Babylon Hotel premiered to great acclaim in Autumn 2025 at New Vic Theatre. The Spring tour marks a major milestone for Claybody Theatre who are touring their work beyond Stoke-on-Trent for the first time.
Nella Racksole wants steak and beer for her birthday treat, but these are not on the menu of the exclusive Grand Babylon Hotel – so her American Railroad Millionaire father obligingly buys the chef… the kitchen… the entire hotel.
However, The Grand Babylon is not all it seems, and Theodore Racksole soon discovers there’s more than a juicy steak on his plate – with kidnapping and murder for starters!
Have Theodore and Nella bitten off more than they can chew?
The Grand Babylon Hotel is a rollicking comedy thriller, with a virtuoso cast of five bringing you many faces, chases, glamour, intrigue, and a couple of German princes thrown in for good measure.
- The Grand Babylon Hotel
- By Arnold Bennett
- Adapted by Deborah McAndrew
- Directed by Conrad Nelson
- At Harrogate Theatre Wed 1 – Sat 4 April 2026
- www.harrogatetheatre.co.uk/events/the-grand-babylon-hotel-claybody-theatre/
A riotous evening out!
The cast features: Shelley Atkinson (Marvellous, New Vic and Soho Place Theatre; Blithe Spirit, Stephen Joseph Theatre) as Miss Spencer, Baroness Zerlinski, Messenger and Nanny Heidi, Thomas Cotran (Love’s Labour’s Lost, Shakespeare North Playhouse and Stephen Joseph Theatre) as Reginald Dimmock, Prince Albert of Posen and Rocco, Michael Hugo (One Man, Two Guvnors, New Vic Theatre; What the Butler Saw, London Classic Theatre) as Jules, Tom Jackson, Detective Marshall, Porter, Ticket Collector and Prince Eugen of Posen, Alice Pryor (Inferna, Riverside; BLEACHED, Etcetera Theatre) as Nella Racksole, and Bill Champion (The Girl Next Door, Stephen Joseph Theatre; Moll Flanders, Mercury Theatre Colchester) as Theodore Racksole.
Yorkshire-born Joint Artistic Director of Claybody Theatre, Deborah McAndrew, has adapted The Grand Babylon Hotel for the stage, working alongside Director Conrad Nelson. Both have strong connections to Harrogate, having toured and co-produced shows with Harrogate Theatre during their time at Northern Broadsides, including co-productions The Grand Gesture (2013) and A Government Inspector (2012), and with touring shows including Much Ado About Nothing (2019), The Winter’s Tale (2015).
On the upcoming visit to Harrogate, McAndrew said:
Harrogate is a stone’s throw from where I grew up in North Leeds, and it always feels like coming home. I’m sure Yorkshire audiences will really enjoy this show.
Conrad said:
Although this is Claybody’s first tour, in the past Deborah and I have done many shows at Harrogate Theatre with other companies, such as Northern Broadsides. We know the theatre and the town, and we’re sure that Harrogate audiences will love a stay at The Grand Babylon Hotel.
The Grand Babylon Hotel is sponsored by KMF Precision Sheet Metal.
