A tale of friendship, love and loss: Greatest Days at the Sunderland Empire

Last night, (Tuesday, November 14) I had the greatest time, seeing the Greatest Days musical at the Sunderland Empire. 

If you are a fan of Take That and their huge catalogue of songs, then this is a musical you will for sure enjoy. 

But this isn’t a story about the band and the members themselves, but rather the fans who followed the boys through the years, and grew up listening to their songs. 

Greatest Days: The Official Take That Musical, follows five girls in 1993, who are obsessed with the boyband we all know and love - Take That, although the band name is actually never mentioned. 

What follows is an incredibly relatable story of love, heartbreak, and most of all, friendship - as the girls reconnect in their adulthood. 

I don’t want to give the story and big emotional twist away, but I will say that this is an incredibly emotional tale, and tears sprung to my eyes more than once. 

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But on a lighter note, for those of us who remember the 90s (from the fashion choices to the music), this musical is for sure a trip down memory lane. 

It’s certainly a feel-good (although definitely teary) musical, which was brought to life by the actors’ incredible performances.

Brookside’s Jennifer Ellison took on the lead role of Rachel with ease, joined by Holly Ashton as Zoe, Rachel Marwood as Heather, and Jamie Rose Monk as Claire. 

All of the women provided us with emotional and funny scenes, with Jamie Rose Monk stealing the spotlight for her comic timing but also portrayal of relatable struggles as we transition into adulthood. 

Their younger counterparts were perfectly cast as Olivia Hallett as Rachel, Hannah Brown as Zoe, Kitty Harris as Heather and Mari McGinley as Claire - with each girl giving a fantastic performance. 

Mary Moore played Debbie Thomas, who we only see as a youngster, however, her performance was certainly one to be remembered and made a powerful impact on the audience. 

Packed with singing, dancing, lights and lots of colour - Greatest Days really took us into the story that was being told on the stage.

The men who played the boyband are largely to thank for that, as each one of them were exceptionally talented and helped to enhance the storyline.

It is for sure one of the best musicals I’ve ever seen and most of all - so relatable, as it took the stories of ordinary young girls and later adults, and gave them a voice.

Greatest Days will be at the Sunderland Empire until Saturday, November 18. 

To book tickets, please visit the ATG websites.