Great new season of music and comedy in Leeds

The festivities are definitely over when panto comes to an end, so as City Varieties Music Hall wraps up its Rock ‘n’ Roll Panto (finishes Saturday 12^th Jan) the venue is getting ready to welcome a whole host of big names in comedy, music and drama – a season set to lift everyone’s January blues.

There’s comedy with the likes Trevor Noah, David Baddiel, Shappi Khorsandi, Russell Kane, Jimeoin, Jason Manford, Rich Hall, David O’Doherty, Chris Ramsey, Jerry Sadowitz and Richard Herring alongside the science-tastic  Robin Ince,  Edinburgh Festival  phenomena Festival of the Spoken Nerd and Robert Newman (formerly of Newman & Baddiel)offering hisNew Theory of Evolution.

An Evening With… nights are presented by Scaffold’s Mike McGear McCartney (brother of Paul), Radio 4’s David Sedaris and World Superbike champion Carl Fogarty with TV pundit James Whitham - probably better known as Foggy & Whit.

Drama comes from the Oliver Award-winning Morecambe starring Bob Golding as comedy icon Eric Morecambe, Leeds Theatre Company Red Ladder bring their double bill of music and drama Songs of Solidarity , Suffrage & Strength and musical drama Miss Nightingale truly captures the spirit of the Forties.

A whole host of music genres are set to take to the world-famous stage from folk heroes Fairport Convention, Eddi Reader (Fairground Attraction),  Oysterband and Feast of Fiddles, to the legendary Blues Band featuring Paul Jones (The Manfreds) via guitar heroes including Albert Hogan and Andy McKee.  Musical theatre fans will delight in Louise Dearman, star of Cats, Evita and Wicked and Johnathan Ansell, formerly of G4 and now based in Leeds.

The Sooty Show, Andy & Mike’s Tick Tock Time Machine, Sid’s Show and Teddy Bears Picnic give kids and their families the chance to experience the Victorian theatre and, in keeping with its long and respected history of variety, the venue welcomes ventriloquist Steve Hewlett, Grumpy Old Women Jenny Éclair, Susie Blake and Kate Robbins in Fifty Shades of Beige,  Spanish dance, music and drama  from Jaleo Flamenco, comedy hypnotist Andrew Newton and of course the legendary Good Old Days returns for its 61^st year!

It’s a packed start to 2014 for this Leeds venue – and there is more to come. For full details visit cityvarieties.co.uk.