Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story

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Posted on 19 August 2025

Coming to Whitley Bay Monday 9th & Tuesday 10th February 2026

The show opens at the Birmingham Hippodrome on Wednesday 27th August for six performances, ahead of a UK tour covering the length and breadth of the country. From Norwich to Cardiff, Plymouth to Glasgow, Salford to Southampton and Bradford to Belfast, plus many more locations in between!

Loved by critics and audiences alike, Buddy tells the enduring story of the musical icon’s meteoric rise from his early Country and R&B musical influences, to becoming a major Rock & Roll innovator and international star, up until his legendary final performance at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa – and tragic, untimely death at the age of just 22. In 18 short months the bespectacled boy from Lubbock, Texas, revolutionised Rock & Roll – the sound of the youth – and how it was written, recorded and performed, influencing everyone from The Beatles to Bob Dylan, the Rolling Stones to Fleetwood Mac. And Buddy’s influence wasn’t just limited to the sound. “He made it okay to wear glasses,” said John Lennon. “I was Buddy Holly.”

Boasting a multi-talented cast of actor-musicians, Buddy presents two terrific hours of music with over 20 of his greatest hits, including the timeless classics That’ll Be The Day, Peggy Sue, Oh Boy, Everyday and Rave On. With the Big Bopper’s Chantilly Lace and Ritchie Valens’ La Bamba, and rip-roaring versions of Shout and Johnny B. Goode completing a stellar musical line-up, Buddy is a not to be missed evening of family entertainment.

AJ Jenks returns to the show and will play the role of Buddy Holly at the majority of performances, with Joe Sterling playing Buddy at some performances also. Cast members include: Stephen Alexander-Kerr, Miguel Angel, Joshua Barton, Andrew Farrell, Ewan Ling, Marta Miranda, Melker Nilsson, Thomas-Fabian Parrish and Laura-Dene Perryman.