ELF the Musical returns to the West End for the Christmas period at the Aldwych Theatre starring real life couple Carrie Hope Fletcher and Joel Montague.
In just over 7 weeks, Christmas will come early to the Aldwych Theatre when Joel Montague, Carrie Hope Fletcher and Aled Jones MBE will star in the smash hit musical ELF as Buddy, Jovie and Walter Hobbs respectively.
Along with these lead roles, the full cast is now announced for ELF’s highly anticipated return to the West End in a strictly limited, 10-week Christmas season, running from 28 October 2025 to 3 January 2026.
Joining them will be Rosanna Hyland (West End: Disruption, Back to the Future The Musical) as Emily Hobbs, Martyn Ellis (West End: Wicked, The Lion King,) as Santa/Mr Greenway, Lucinda Lawrence (9 to 5, West End; Hairspray, UK Tour) as Deb and Dermot Canavan (West End: Hairspray, Fiddler on the Roof) as Store Manager with Mollie Cleere (MAMMA MIA! The Party, The O2), Farirayi Garaba (MAMMA MIA!, International tour), Sophie Pourret (The Great Gatsby, West End), Lucy Rice (Clueless, West End), Biancha Szynal (Bring It On, Southbank Centre), Kyle Cox (& Juliet, UK Tour), Zack Guest (Moulin Rouge! The Music, West End), Ryan Jupp (Crazy For You, West End), Dominic Lamb (Guys & Dolls, Bridge Theatre), Danny Nattrass (Brigadoon, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre). The cast is completed by Sophie Camble (Cinderella The Musical, West End) as Swing, Amy Punter (TINA – The Tina Turner Musical, West End) as Swing, Samuel John Humphreys (The Great Gatsby, West End) as Swing and Michael Tyler (MAMMA MIA!, West End) as Swing.
The role of Michael Hobbs will be played by Ayrton English, Max Garlick, Harry Georgiou and Samuel Sturge.
Based on the beloved 2003 New Line Cinema hit starring Will Ferrell, ELF features a book by Tony Award-winners Thomas Meehan (Annie, The Producers, Hairspray) and Bob Martin (The Drowsy Chaperone), with songs by Tony Award nominees Matthew Sklar and Chad Beguelin (The Wedding Singer).
ELF is the funny and charming tale of Buddy, who mistakenly crawls into Santa’s bag as a baby and was raised as an elf! Way too tall and not so great at his job, Buddy is the North Pole’s biggest misfit… and knows he’ll never belong. When Santa tells him the truth, Buddy heads to New York City to find his birth father (who turns out to be quite high on the naughty list). After causing some merry mayhem in Manhattan, Buddy finally discovers the gift of family and falls in love. And when Santa’s sleigh crashes in Central Park, it’s Buddy who finds a way to save Christmas forever!
After two sold-out runs at the Dominion Theatre and a record-breaking holiday run at the Marquis Theatre on Broadway, ELF will bring holiday cheer to London with a brand-new set, adapted for the dimensions of the Aldwych Theatre by Tim Goodchild. This production of ELF will once again be directed by Philip Wm. McKinley, with choreography by Liam Steel, set and costumes by Tim Goodchild, lighting by Patrick Woodroffe, sound by Gareth Owen, video by Ian William Galloway and casting by Grindrod Burton Casting.
First staged at the Dominion Theatre in 2022, this production became the fastest selling show in the venue’s history, going on to break its own box office records during the subsequent 2023 run at the same house. When this production ran at the Marquis Theatre in 2024, it marked the musical’s first return to Broadway in over a decade and went on to break the venue’s box office’s record for weekly grosses in two consecutive weeks.
Additional information about the West End production of ELF the Musical
When is ELF the Musical playing in London?
ELF the Musical is playing 28 October 2025 – 3 January 2026
What time does ELF the Musical start?
ELF the Musical will play Tuesday – Saturday at 7pm, with matinee performances on Thursday and Saturday at 2pm.
There will be additional matinees on: 9 December & 16 December at 2pm.
Christmas 2025 Performance Schedule
Monday 22 December – 2pm & 7pm
Tuesday 23 December – 2pm & 7pm
Wednesday 24 December – 2pm
Thursday 25 December – No Performance
Friday 26 December – 2pm & 7pm
Saturday 27 December – 2pm & 7pm
Sunday 28 December – No Performance
Monday 29 December – 2pm & 7pm
Tuesday 30 December – 2pm & 7pm
Wednesday 31 December – 2pm
Thursday 1 January – 7pm
Friday 2 January – 7pm
Saturday 3 January – 2pm & 7pm
How long is ELF the Musical?
The running time for ELF the Musical is TBC
What Theatre is Elf the Musical on at?
Elf the Musical will play at the Aldwych Theatre
What is the age recommendation for ELF the Musical?
ELF the Musical is recommended for ages 5+.
Under 5s cannot be admitted to the theatre. Children aged 15 or under must be accompanied by an adult (at least one adult per 10 children). All patrons, regardless of age, must have a valid ticket.
Are there any Accessible Performances for ELF the Musical?
There are not currently any accessible performances listed for ELF the Musical.
More about the cast of ELF the Musical
Joel Montague’s stage credits include George Wilson in the UK premiere of The Great Gatsby (London Coliseum), King George III in Hamilton (Victoria Palace Theatre); Harvey Goldsmith in Just For One Day (Old Vic); Amos Hart in Chicago (UK Tour); Ogie in Waitress (Adelphi Theatre); Mendel in Falsettos (The Other Palace); Nicely-Nicely Johnson in Guys and Dolls (Théâtre Marigny, Paris); Kiss Me Kate (Sheffield Crucible); Kevin in Fat Friends (UK Tour); alternate Dewey Finn in School of Rock (New London Theatre); Eddie in Funny Girl (Savoy Theatre/Menier Chocolate Factory); The Producers (UK Tour); Urinetown (Apollo Theatre/St James Theatre); The Rocky Horror Picture Show (UK Tour); Sister Act (UK Tour) and Billy Elliot (West End). His screen credits include Kay Mellor’s Girlfriends (ITV).
Carrie Hope Fletcher is currently on tour as Calamity Jane in Calamity Jane. Previously she has starred as Elizabeth in The Crown Jewels (West End/UK Tour), Grusha in The Caucasian Chalk Circle (Rose Theatre), Cinderella in Cinderella (West End), Fantine in Les Misérables: The Concert (West End), Veronica Sawyer in Heathers (West End/The Other Palace), Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family (UK Tour), Carabosse in Sleeping Beauty (Marlowe Theatre), Brenda in The Christmasaurus Live (Eventim Apollo), Truly Scrumptious in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (UK Tour), Beth in Jeff Wayne’s War of the Worlds (Arena Tour) and Eponine in Les Misérables (West End). She is also a four-time WhatsOnStage Award winner, recognised with Best Actress in a Musical for her performances in Cinderella, Heathers and The Addams Family, as well as Best Takeover in a Role for Les Misérables. Carrie has headlined two successful solo tours, An Open Book (2023) and Love Letters (2024), showcasing her as a leading voice on stage in her own right. Her debut solo album When the Curtain Falls reached the UK Top 20 and hit number two in the iTunes Soundtrack Charts. She has also been recognised in the music world as a GRAMMY nominee for Cinderella (Original Cast Album) and Les Misérables: The Staged Concert. Carrie is an accomplished author across fiction, non-fiction and children’s literature. She made her debut with All I Know Now: Wonderings and Reflections on Growing Up Gracefully and has since written a number of novels including: On the Other Side, All That She Can See, When the Curtain Falls, In the Time We Lost and With This Kiss.
Aled Jones MBE has had an extraordinary career over the past four decades, he has sung for the Pope and the Royal Family, received an MBE, released over 40 albums with over 10 million album sales and over 40 Silver, Gold and Platinum Discs. He is also the first classical artist to have 2 albums in the Top 5 of the Official Album Chart. Aled began his career at age 12 with the defining Walking in the Air from the animated film The Snowman. He has forged an extensive career as a TV & Radio presenter with shows across BBC Radio 2, 3 and BBC Radio Wales along with the most listened to show on Sunday on Classic FM and has been a firm favourite presenting Songs of Praise for over 20 years. 2022 saw Aled starring on ITV’s The Masked Singer as “Traffic Cone”. This last year has seen Aled’s The Full Circle tour reaching parts of the UK never visited by Aled before with well over 100 dates.
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