Claybody Theatre in association with New Vic Theatre are delighted to be visiting Hull with Arnold Bennett’s rollicking comedy thriller, The Grand Babylon Hotel. The company visits Hull Truck Theatre from Tuesday 10th to Friday 13th March 2026.
Described as “delightfully bonkers”, The Grand Babylon Hotel premiered to great acclaim in Autumn 2025 at New Vic Theatre. The Spring tour marks a major milestone for Claybody Theatre who are touring their work beyond Stoke-on-Trent for the first time.
Nella Racksole wants steak and beer for her birthday treat, but these are not on the menu of the exclusive Grand Babylon Hotel – so her American Railroad Millionaire father obligingly buys the chef… the kitchen… the entire hotel.
However, The Grand Babylon is not all it seems, and Theodore Racksole soon discovers there’s more than a juicy steak on his plate – with kidnapping and murder for starters!
Have Theodore and Nella bitten off more than they can chew?
The Grand Babylon Hotel is a rollicking comedy thriller, with a virtuoso cast of five bringing you many faces, chases, glamour, intrigue, and a couple of German princes thrown in for good measure.
A riotous evening out!
The cast features: Michael Hugo (Pinnochio, Hull Truck Theatre; The Ladykillers (New Vic Theatre co-production with Hull Truck Theatre) as Jules, Tom Jackson, Detective Marshall, Porter, Ticket Collector and Prince Eugen of Posen, Shelley Atkinson (Marvellous, New Vic and Soho Place Theatre; Blithe Spirit, Stephen Joseph Theatre) as Miss Spencer, Baroness Zerlinski, Messenger and Nanny Heidi, Thomas Cotran (Love’s Labour’s Lost, Shakespeare North Playhouse and Stephen Joseph Theatre) as Reginald Dimmock, Prince Albert of Posen and Rocco, Alice Pryor (Inferna, Riverside; BLEACHED, Etcetera Theatre) as Nella Racksole, and Bill Champion (The Girl Next Door, Stephen Joseph Theatre; Moll Flanders, Mercury Theatre Colchester) as Theodore Racksole.
Yorkshire-born Joint Artistic Director of Claybody Theatre, Deborah McAndrew, has adapted The Grand Babylon Hotel for the stage. McAndrew has written three Winter productions at Hull Truck Theatre: Oliver Twist, Peter Pan, and A Christmas Carol.
On the upcoming visit to Hull, McAndrew said: “It’s always a joy to come home to Yorkshire, and to Hull Truck in particular. It’s a fabulous place to work, and the audiences are so warm.”
Director Conrad Nelson also has strong connections with the venue, having worked as Associate Director and Composer on Richard III (2017); a co-production with Hull Truck Theatre and Northern Broadsides as part of Hull’s UK City of Culture celebrations. Nelson also was Director and Dramaturg on the 2012 Hull Truck Theatre production of Ballroom Blitz by Dave Windass.
Conrad said: “We’re very excited to be touring with a Claybody show for the first time, and it’s extra special to be coming to Hull, where audiences love a good night out. We promise that The Grand Babylon Hotel will be just that!”
Further information can be found at www.hulltruck.co.uk/whats-on/drama/the-grand-babylon-hotel/
The Grand Babylon Hotel is sponsored by KMF Precision Sheet Metal.