The Gatehouse Theatre has had its busiest year since opening over 40 years ago.

In the past 12 months, over 180,000 people have passed through the venue's doors, a 6% increase from last year.

The theatre also took record revenue with its highest income since 1982.

During the festive season, pantomime Sleeping Beauty proved to be a great success with over 19,500 people flocking to see the show.

Performances from comedians Jason Manford, Milton Jones, Bobby Davro, Chris McCausland and Scott Bennett also drew large crowds as did music from Showaddywaddy, Gareth Gates and Nik Kershaw.

Gatehouse Marketing Manager Keith Harrison said: 'It's been the busiest year in Gatehouse history, with more visitors, the most revenue and more shows being scheduled than ever before.

'It's great that audiences are loving a big night out at the theatre and also a sign that performers love coming to Stafford, as we have such a beautiful building and we get such good feedback.

"We've enjoyed working with Channel 4 on a major production and hosted a Channel 5 TV series premiere, so it's great to get national recognition from some major partners.

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'One of the key drivers is our booming social media following and active subscriber base – which stands at around 150,000 people – as well as our local volunteers who do such a brilliant job of welcoming audiences, checking tickets and showing people to their seats.'

Last year's production of Hamlet had the largest recorded since moving location from Stafford Castle in 2023.

The trailer for Richard III, which will run from June to July, has been viewed online more than 100,000 times.

Stafford MP Leigh Ingham recently praised the theatre in the House of Commons and said: 'This success is down to the brilliant cast, staff, volunteers, and the thousands of local people who support our theatre.

'Arts and culture is alive and well in Stafford and I'll keep pushing the Government to invest in towns like Stafford.'

Cllr Gillian Pardesi, Cabinet Member for Leisure at Stafford Borough Council, said: 'It is wonderful to see how the Gatehouse Theatre continues to flourish bringing top quality entertainment to Stafford.

'The performances are supported not only by local people but those from further afield which demonstrates how good their offer is – and how important the theatre is to the Stafford economy, especially in the evenings. I am pleased the partnership between the council and Freedom Leisure has helped our ongoing theatre success story.'