Blood Brothers – Review – Bradford Alhambra
By Steve Crabtree, April 2026
Whenever Blood Brothers comes around, I always have this internal debate: Have I seen this musical too many times?
It’s not that I’m addicted to it…I don’t think. But, I love it. And, it was the first musical I ever saw, right here at Bradford’s Alhambra Theatre over 20 years ago. Back then, I went along as a total theatre novice with a family who’d seen it countless times and promised me that people would be crying from the very start. They weren’t joking – the sobbing started as the opening scene began.
Until now, I’d seen it a total of seven times across Leeds, Stoke, Bradford and the West End, and returning to the Alhambra this week for opening night for an eighth was one of the best decisions I’ve made this year…
“Dark, ominous prelude”
As expected, the Alhambra was packed for this one. Blood Brothers is a show that people want to see time and again, and one they can really feel. It’s contains something oh-so relatable within it for most people.
And as we took our seats, that dark, ominous prelude set our emotions. Regardless whether you’re watching for the first time or not, it grabs you from the start. Perhaps even more so when you know exactly what’s coming.
What is coming? Well, it’s the story of two twins separated at birth – and for those watching for the first time, it’s a fairly heavy setup.
Mrs Johnstone, a struggling Liverpool mother with too many mouths to feed, finds herself pregnant (again) with twins. In a moment of unwanted desperation, she makes a secret pact with her wealthy, childless employer, Mrs Lyons, to give one of the babies away. The boys, Mickey and Eddie, grow up on opposite sides of the tracks: one in poverty and one in privilege – both completely unaware they’re brothers.
Despite the mothers’ best efforts to keep them apart, a chance meeting as children leads to a “blood brother” pact that binds their lives together, eventually spiralling toward a superstitious and tragic conclusion that the Narrator reminds us of throughout the night.
“The best version of Blood Brothers I’ve ever seen”
I’m pretty sure the story is identical to the one I first saw two decades ago. I’ve never spotted a single change in the set, and I can’t think there’s much shift in the dialogue either. But then, when you’ve got such a perfect story and a perfect musical, why on earth would you change it? What made this night stand out, though, was the cast. I’d go as far as to say this might have been the best version of Blood Brothers I’ve ever seen.
The guys playing Mickey and Eddie were standout. Absolutely fantastic. Joe Slight took on the role of the ‘given away’ one – the prim and proper Eddie Lyons, and shifted from the innocent kid to the awkwardly confident teenager without any visible effort. He was completely convincing, landing every line with perfect timing. His physical acting made the character fully believable, but it was his chemistry with Sean Jones, playing Mickey, that really made the show tick.
Jones gets all the plaudits from me. By far and away, he gave the greatest performance of Mickey I’ve witnessed. Landing the jokes when he was “seven, nearly eight” is one thing – but transitioning the character in to the elder Mickey was so perfectly done. He brought a grittier and sadder feel to the elder Mickey Johnstone, one that made you feel quite disturbed as he descends into addiction and depression. There was a realism to his acting where you truly felt his pain, and you felt tension as the final 20 minutes unfolded.
For me, it wasn’t just stage acting; you felt uncomfortable for him. With him. You could see the physical toll on him as the character’s life fell apart, and it made the latter part of act two feel incredibly heavy.
“Full of lol’s”
The music in Blood Brothers never changes, and I wouldn’t want it to. The clever references to Marilyn Monroe throughout Mrs Johnstone’s numbers are as sharp as ever, charting her journey from a hopeful young woman to a mother broken by her own choices. ‘Easy Terms’ is always an emotional heavy-hitter, as is ‘That Guy’ between Mickey and Eddie, my favourite song of the night.
Despite the elements of tragedy, the show is awash with little comic bits, especially in act one. As the guy two seats down from me put it just before the lights went down: “It’s full of lol’s.” He wasn’t wrong. The childhood scenes are a joy, and the audience was fully enjoying everything…laughing when they should, out loud.
We were even treated to a bit of rare magic with an unexpected corpse between the two blood brothers. It came in nicely and drew a huge round of applause as the elder twins reunite. Later on, a quick heckle from the crowd during a kissing scene brought a perfect reaction from Sean Jones. He didn’t break character for a second, but he acknowledged it in a way that had Bradford laughing. You’d never imagine those moments working in Blood Brothers, but it so did.
“Menacing-to-emotionally drained”
Elsewhere on the stage, Kristofer Harding worked the menacing-to-emotionally drained narrator perfectly, grabbing another ‘best I’ve seen’ award from me. He paced the stage and scenery like a shadow, always there to remind us of the debt that had to be paid.
Gemma Brodrick was also amazing as Linda, from the excited kid, to the feisty girl, to the exhausted woman caught between the two brothers.
I hadn’t really factored the character of Linda high up in the hierarchy of importance to the overall story by Willy Russell before. But Brodrick’s outstanding performance made me sit up and take more notice, especially how she showed heartbreak in the famous love triangle.
“Immediate standing ovation”
Blood Brothers has a couple of famous gunshot scenes in it and, from a personal point of view, I never fail to jump out of my seat when the guns go off. Tonight was no exception, and even if you know it’s coming – you’re that wrapped up in this wonderful musical that you’re left in shock.
It’s the end where the show really grabs you by the throat though. The moving tones of ‘Tell Me It’s Not True’ rang out clearly through the Alhambra as the show came to its final scene, and it’s here where it’s genuinely difficult not to crack. I’ve never cried at this show yet, despite what that family promised me years ago. But this performance, unashamedly, had me very close to finally shedding that tear.
Tonight’s powerhouse of a finale left the theatre stunned, and the show earned an easy and immediate standing ovation the moment the lights went down.
“More relevant than ever”
What I notice as I grow older, or perhaps just because I’ve seen it so often, is a deeper emotional understanding of Blood Brothers’ themes. Class divide, love, mental wellbeing, desperation and life pressures. It all feels more relevant than ever today. Or perhaps there’s just something with this current cast that takes an already incredible show and magnifies its emotion masterfully.
I’m so glad I decided to revisit this one. It’s by far my favourite outing of Blood Brothers, and if you’ve never seen the musical, it’s about time you did. I can’t think of a better storyline for British people in any musical, and I know I’m not the only person to find it timeless, gripping, and…maybe…potentially…addictive…
Blood Brothers runs at the Alhambra Theatre, Bradford, until Saturday 2nd May.
images: Jack Merriman
Give Steve music, give him food, give him theatre, tech or travel… and he’s a happy man. He’s been writing professionally since 2003, turning to journalism in 2017 when it offered him the chance to enjoy a lot of his existing passions, and learn some new ones at the same time. Steve can be found spending many of his summer nights watching bands at The Piece Hall in his hometown of Halifax, or enjoying a bite to eat and a drink with his wife anywhere in Yorkshire at any time of year. Random fact: He does the best impression of Zippy and George from Rainbow that anyone has ever heard.
