Stacey Dooley will make her West End debut as Jenny in the award-winning play 2:22 Ghost Story.
The Strictly Come Dancing star, 37, has been announced as the new lead of the popular play, taking on the role of Jenny, which was previously played by Cheryl and Laura Whitmore.
Stacey said excitedly: ‘Delighted to be involved in the upcoming adaptation of 2:22! Fixed up! I fell in love with the work when I went to see it in 2022.
‘All four characters feel very familiar, which means the subtle ‘ghost story’ works brilliantly. I can’t wait to bring Jenny back to life! Let’s go!’
Lily Allen was the first to take on the role of Jenny when the West End play premiered in summer 2021. The singer earned rave reviews and a Best Actress nomination at the Olivier Awards.
Stacey Dooley will make her West End debut as Jenny in the award-winning play 2:22 Ghost Story
Stacey will star alongside Inbetweeners star James Buckley, who will take on the role of Ben.
Other notable names who have appeared on the show in its various locations include Stephanie Beatriz, Giovanna Fletcher, Tom Felton, Mandip Gill and Matt Willis.
The play follows Jenny, who believes her new home is haunted, but her husband Sam is skeptical.
They argue with their first dinner guests, old friend Lauren and new partner Ben, and decide to stay up until 2:22 a.m. to find out the truth.
Stacey, who won Strictly in 2018 with her now-husband Kevin Clifton, will star alongside Inbetweeners star James Buckley, who will take on the role of Ben.
James added: “I’m so excited to be rejoining the cast of 2.22. It’s such a brilliant play and to be back in such a brilliant theatre.
“It will be great to play Ben again and now all I have to do is make sure I remember the lines. I can’t wait to see you all there.”
Written by award-winning writer Danny Robins, creator of the hit BBC podcast The Battersea Poltergeist, and directed by Matthew Dunster and Isabel Marr, 2:22 is an adrenaline-filled night where secrets emerge and ghosts may or may not appear.
Stacey is a documentary filmmaker who won Strictly in 2018 with her now-husband Kevin Clifton.
Lily Allen was the first to take on the role of Jenny when the West End play premiered in summer 2021. The singer earned rave reviews and an Olivier nomination.
Opening Night will now end at London’s Gielgud Theater on Saturday 18 May, two months earlier than originally planned on 27 July.
It will run for a strictly limited 10-week season at the Gielgud Theatre, after it was revealed that the opening night of Sheridan Smith’s West End show will end two months earlier than planned due to terrible reviews.
Sheridan’s show has been plagued with problems, including audience members leaving midway and criticizing it as “boring”, causing its run to be shortened by two months.
The show will now end its run at London’s Gielgud Theater on Saturday, May 18, two months earlier than originally planned on July 27, as producers blamed the “challenging financial landscape” for the shock decision.
Announcing the news earlier this month, the production team said the play “may not have had the life we hoped for.”
This means the show’s current UK and Ireland tour continues until August, meaning 2:22 will run simultaneously in Manchester, then Dublin and London.
Tickets will go on general sale for the new shows on April 24.
It comes after documentary filmmaker Stacey admitted she hired an entire trailer to ‘drag’ her husband Kevin Clifton and their 14-month-old daughter around the United States while filming her new project.
She’s back for another Stacey Dooley Sleeps Over USA series where she meets a variety of extraordinary families.
Stacey uploaded a photo of the trailer to Instagram, called ‘Minnie Winnie’, and wrote: “I had to hire a whole trailer and drag it all over America.
The move comes after documentary filmmaker Stacey admitted she hired an entire trailer to “drag” her husband Kevin Clifton and their 14-month-old daughter across the United States while filming her new project.
“I just wasn’t ready to walk away from Minnie. Kev had to live here for 3 weeks reading the same book about tigers over and over again. It was chaos but also a lot of fun.”
The series sees Stacey stay for 72 hours in an unusual family’s home, and the latest three-part series was filmed in the US.
Stacey and Kevin have been together since 2019, a year after they won Strictly Come Dancing.
Stacey gave birth to the couple’s daughter, Minnie, in January 2023.