Review: The Choir of Man UK tour, Glasgow | Pub sing-along meets musical theatre

Name: The Choir of Man
Brand: UK tour
Rating: 3 (1 reviews)

Lisa in the theatre
Apr 29
4 min read

Updated: Apr 30

The first UK tour of global smash-hit musical The Choir of Man makes its Scottish Premier in Glasgow this week. The Choir of Man is at the King's Theatre, Glasgow until Saturday 2nd May 2026. Read my review below.

The Choir of Man UK Tour ★★★☆☆

Review: 28 April 2026 | King's Theatre, Glasgow

Following successful runs in London's West End and multiple international tours, The Choir of Man have set out on their first ever UK tour, and this week make their Scottish premiere in Glasgow.

Set in a local pub - The Jungle - The Choir of Man is a jukebox musical that celebrates community and friendship. There's no story to speak of, but lots of fun and audience interaction. The premise is that the pub has a choir, rather than say a darts team or a dominoes league, and the guys get together to sing. The theatre audience becomes the pub locals for the night. And that's it really! It's cheerfully entertaining, but there's not much to it.

Thankfully, the all-male cast of nine are so enthusiastic and energetic, they create a warm, electrifying atmosphere in the theatre, and it's impossible not to get drawn into their joyful pub shindig.

Oluwalonimi (Nimi) Owoyemi is 'The Poet’, and he acts as our narrator for the evening, introducing each of the characters in the pub through his spellbinding, soulful storytelling. There's the Joker, the Hardman, the Bore and suchlike, but we never really get to know them or the stories behind their nicknames. Character development takes a backseat to romping through covers of well-known songs - and most of the audience seems delighted by that.

The guys sing hit songs from artists such as Adele, Katy Perry and Guns N' Roses. Individually, their voices are excellent, but together their harmonies are spine-tingling.

At various times during the show, members of the audience are brought on stage to take part in the shenanigans and at others, the audience is invited to sing along. Coupled with lots of beer swilling and repeated shouts of "Cheers everyone" it's a theatre etiquette nightmare. But it's unarguably a more relaxed environment than a normal night at the theatre.

The Choir of Man Uk tour cast — The Choir of Man UK tour cast. Photo: Mark Senior

Super-talented cast

The super-talented cast not only sing but play instruments and dance too. Their energy never wavers; even towards the end of the newly extended 2-hour (including interval) show, their eagerness to please the avid crowd is palpable, and their leaps are still impossibly high and impressive.

It did not go unnoticed that each cast member was patient and good-humoured with the audience members that they brought on stage. Everyone seemed to be treated so well and with the utmost respect and care. These seem like a great group of guys to have a drink with!

The Choir of Man UK tour is a show where all nine of the cast excel. But those that made the strongest impression were Rob Godfrey 'the Beast', Gustav Melbardis 'the Maestro' - whose enthusiastic piano playing is a delight; Oluwalonimi (Nimi) Owoyemi 'the Poet’, who is such a likeable raconteur; and Levi Tyrell Johnson 'the Hardman', whose 'You're the Voice' brought the house down.

Directed by Nic Doodson, the show races through a jukebox of varied hit songs with never a dull moment nor wasted opportunity to inject some humour or revelry. There are so many characters and songs; there should be something that resonates with everyone. For me, the highlight of the show was the acapella version of Sia's Chandelier. A beautiful song; the arrangement here really shows off the actor's exquisite voices.

Why local pubs matter

Aside from the music, there is a little spoken word in the show written by poet Ben Norris. The beautiful, engaging rhythmic monologues do, on one occasion in act I, attempt to explain the importance of pubs, and the friendship and community they offer to normal people... But it's not enough! This message is the beating heart of the show and it was a little lost in this production. The Choir of Man started life at the Edinburgh Fringe, and the message hit much harder there. It needs to be pushed forward for greater impact in this version.

To emphasise the importance of community, the UK tour production of Choir of Man has invited local choirs to sing with them in each venue. On opening night, for the Scottish premiere at Glasgow's King's Theatre, we had almost 200 singers from three local choirs join voices with the Choir of Man cast for a lovely way to end the show.

The Choir of Man offers an upbeat, cheerful night out with some brilliant songs sung by incredibly talented men. I had a great night out, but I do struggle to connect with it as a piece of musical theatre. It feels like a pub karaoke concert - albeit a very good pub karaoke concert. However, it does what it does well and is incredibly popular with audiences. If you've ever wished that you could sing along at a musical theatre show, or go up on stage to drink a pint of beer with the cast, then this is the show for you! ★★★☆☆

The Choir of Man UK tour is at the King's Theatre, Glasgow, until Saturday 2nd May and then continues on tour across the UK and Ireland through 2026.