Made in Liverpool, a new play about Stuart Sutcliffe, premieres at the Northcott from 16 June 2027. General booking opens 10am Monday 26 October, £17.50 to £50.
The Exeter Northcott will stage the world premiere of a new play about the “Fifth Beatle” next summer. Made in Liverpool, by Gerard McCarthy, runs from Wednesday 16 June to Sunday 4 July 2027, the theatre’s listing shows.
It is the Northcott’s own production. The artwork carries the line “Made by Exeter Northcott”, and it is directed by Martin Berry, the theatre’s Creative Director and Joint Chief Executive (Exeter Northcott, Who’s Who).
Members can book now. General tickets go on sale at 10am on Monday 26 October.
What the play is about
The play tells the story of Stuart Sutcliffe. He was the bass player in the early Beatles, and he died at 21 before the band became famous.
The theatre describes it as “a play, with music”, and says plainly that it is not a Beatles tribute show. It opens in South London in 1976. Stuart’s mother, Millie Sutcliffe, stands among her late son’s paintings and prepares to answer the question she has been asked for fourteen years: what was he really like?
From there the play goes back in time to:
- a Liverpool bedroom, where John Lennon talks his closest friend into buying a bass guitar he can barely play
- Hamburg, where the band plays the Reeperbahn and is photographed for the first time by a young German student, Astrid Kirchherr
- Stuart’s pull away from the band, towards his painting, Astrid and a future Lennon could not follow
John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison appear as characters, “glimpsed at the edges of a much more personal story”, according to the listing. The Northcott has not yet announced a cast.
Dates, times and prices
There are 17 performances over three weeks. None is on a Monday or Tuesday, and there is no show on Sunday 20 June.
| Week | Evenings, 7pm | Matinees |
|---|---|---|
| 16 to 19 June | Wed 16, Thu 17, Fri 18, Sat 19 | Sat 19, 2pm |
| 23 to 27 June | Wed 23, Thu 24, Fri 25, Sat 26 | Sat 26, 2pm; Sun 27, 3pm |
| 30 June to 4 July | Wed 30, Thu 1, Fri 2, Sat 3 | Sat 3, 2pm; Sun 4, 3pm |
Tickets cost £17.50 to £50. The running time is 150 minutes, including an interval.
The show is for ages 14 and over. The theatre warns that it contains swearing, violence and death.
Access performances
The Northcott has set four access performances:
- BSL-interpreted: 24 June, 7pm
- Audio-described: Saturday 26 June, 2pm
- Captioned: Saturday 26 June, 7pm
- Relaxed: Saturday 3 July, 2pm
The listing gives the BSL date as “Tue 24 Jun”. 24 June 2027 is a Thursday, and the booking table shows a single 7pm performance that day, so Thursday is the date to book. It is worth confirming with the box office on 01392 72 63 63 if you need that performance.
What it means for you
- Want the best seats? Members already have priority booking. Everyone else can book from 10am on Monday 26 October, through the Northcott’s Made in Liverpool page.
- Bringing teenagers? The 14+ guidance and the content warning come from the theatre itself.
- Need an access performance? The four dates above sell from the same page. Seating for the captioned performance is reserved for people using the service where possible, the theatre says.
- Getting there: the Northcott is on the University of Exeter’s Streatham Campus, not in the city centre. Bus and parking advice is on our Exeter panto page, and car park tariffs are on parking in Exeter.
For what is on at the Northcott and across the city before then, see what’s on in Exeter this month.
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