West End Wilma award winners issue ‘An Open Letter to all UK Theatre Award Companies’ asking for wider recognition
On Sunday 2 November 2025, theatre blogger West End Wilma held the 9th annual West End Wilma Awards at London’s Leicester Square Theatre.
The West End Wilma Awards celebrate the best of UK theatre, recognising those who often go overlooked in the industry.
Unsung heroes like Understudies, Swings and Ensemble performers are the backbone of the industry but rarely acknowledged for their hard work and dedication.
This years’ award winners included Georgia Pemberton for ‘Rising Star’. Georgia is currently playing the role of Dinah in the London cast of Starlight Express – a role which her mother Beverley Kay played in the original London production.
The Best Swing award went to Fergie Fraser (Mean Girls), Best Understudy to Geri Allen (Operation Mincemeat), Best Ensemble Performer to Grace Swaby Moore (Back To The Future) and Best Dresser to Zephyr Aspen (Starlight Express) plus many more.
For a full list of winners and award categories, plus photos from the show visit https://westendwilma.com/west-end-wilma-awards-winners-2025/
Winners of the West End Wilma Awards, used their moment on stage whilst collecting their award, to call for more diversity and recognition in theatre awards shows like this.
Winner of Best Understudy, Geri Allen, from Operation Mincemeat said
“thank you so much to West End Wilma for actually having these categories because understudies, covers, swings are so unsung. The only time anyone talks about us if when you’ve had to travel 150 miles across the country to ‘save’ a show but actually we are saving it every day”
Best Dresser winner, Zephyr Aspen, for Starlight Express said
“it’s nearly 2026 and we are only just starting to get categories like these. I think now is the time to really start putting pressure on people that do awards shows like these, to really diversify their categories. There are so many departments that go unsung and unrecognised and its really important because they are the life of the show. I urge you to start coming together to celebrate these unsung hero’s.”
An Open Letter to all UK Theatre Award Companies
Zephyr and Geri have now issued ‘An Open Letter to all UK Theatre Award Companies’ (including The UK Theatre Awards; The Critics’ Circle Awards; OFFIES; The WhatsOnStage Awards; The Oliviers & The Black British Theatre Awards), urging them to reflect on the state of theatre without swings, understudies, wigs assistants, dressers, wardrobe assistants, stage managers and everyone else who didn’t design anything for the show but works tirelessly backstage to make the show happen 8+ times a week.
