McFly star Tom Fletcher has revealed that the songs he’s written for the Paddington musical reduced his longtime bandmates to tears.
The songwriter and guitarist, 40, is responsible for the music and lyrics for Paddington: The Musical, which had its world West End premiere on Saturday.
Based on characters from Michael Bond’s book series and from the Studio Canal film series, the Paddington musical is the second stage adaptation of the beloved Peruvian bear.
The production has opened to positive reviews, with particular praise heaped on the live puppetry work, with fans declaring: ‘Save stage Paddington at all costs’.
And it appears we should have bracing ourselves for an emotional Paddington show, if the reactions of Tom’s bandmates in McFly are anything to go by.
Tom told the Radio Times: ‘Dougie (Poynter) and Harry (Judd) came to one of the workshops early on, they’ve heard all the songs because they wanted to test to see if they’d cry – they did.
‘Honestly, McFly have been so supportive of this, as we all are with our separate projects. But I think they know how special this one is and they’re really excited to come along with their kids.’
McFly, formed in 2003, is made up of Tom, Dougie, Harry, and Danny Jones, and were one of the most successful UK pop acts of the 2000s, scoring seven number ones.
And, on opening weekend, the former Strictly Come Dancing contestant revealed that his bandmates aren’t the only people who’ve been offering Tom support and feedback during writing journey.
‘When I needed to write something for the Browns family, all I had to do was ask my wife, my sister and my son – my kids have heard the songs so many times and they’ve been recording all the demos with me.’
The Star Girl singer’s sister Carrie Hope Fletcher is a star of the West End, having appeared in several productions, including Elf the Musical, Heathers, and Les Misérables.
Meanwhile, his wife Giovanna, author and winner of I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here, has appeared in major stage productions such as The Girl On the Train and 2:22 A Ghost Story.
Tom has experience of working on stories of his own, too, with more than a dozen children’s stories published under his name since the mid-2010s.
Paddington: The Musical has opened to the public this month at the Savoy Theatre in Westminster, with tickets currently available until October 25 next year.
The former Voice judge is also currently balancing West End stardom with another McFly tour, with the band set to be on the road for another week or so.
‘It’s bonkers, I don’t get much sleep at the moment. I did the first week of Paddington rehearsals then I was literally going from there to McFly vs Busted rehearsals.’
He added: ‘I can’t even make the first Paddington preview because we’re playing the O2 that night, so it’s such a juggle.’
Got a story?
If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.