List of the longest-running West End shows
List
Unless otherwise states, the number of performances listed is for the original West End production of the show. M denotes a musical, P denotes a straight play, R denotes a revue, D denotes a dance musical, and S denotes a special case.

List of the longest-running West End shows

Section Title: List
Table Section Text: Unless otherwise states, the number of performances listed is for the original West End production of the show. M denotes a musical, P denotes a straight play, R denotes a revue, D denotes a dance musical, and S denotes a special case.

#	Title	Genre	Opening date	Closing date	Performances	Comment

1	The Mousetrap	P	25 November 1952	27,672	Currently running at the St. Martin's Theatre 6 October 1952 – Production premiere at the Theatre Royal, Nottingham 25 November 1952 – Opened in the West End at the New Ambassadors Theatre 13 September 1957 – Longest-running West End play 12 April 1958 – Longest-running West End show overall, 2239 performances 9 December 1964 – 5,000 performances 23 March 1974 – Closed for 2 days to transfer to the St.

2	Les Misérables	M	8 October 1985	13 July 2019	13,785	Currently running at the Queen's Theatre Opened at the Royal Shakespeare Company's Barbican Theatre. Transferred to the Palace Theatre on the West End on 5 December 1985.

3	The Phantom of the Opera	M	9 October 1986	13,450	Currently running at Her Majesty's Theatre

4	The Woman in Black	P	7 June 1989	12,147	Currently running at Fortune Theatre

5	Blood Brothers	M	28 July 1988	10 November 2012	10,013

6	Cats	M	11 May 1981	11 May 2002	8,949	Opened in London at the New London Theatre The show closed on its 21st anniversary, when it was broadcast in Covent Garden for those who couldn't acquire a ticket It held the record for longest running West End Musical for four years before it was overtaken by Les Misérables, the current record holder.

7	Mamma Mia!	M	6 April 1999	8,318	Currently running at Novello Theatre This is the longest running jukebox musical Opened at the Prince Edward Theatre Moved to the Prince of Wales Theatre on 9 June 2004 Moved to Novello Theatre in September 2012

8	The Lion King	M	19 October 1999	8,079	Currently running at Lyceum Theatre

9	Starlight Express	M	27 March 1984	12 January 2002	7,406

10	No Sex Please, We're British	P	3 June 1971	16 January 1987	6,761

11	Stomp	D	25 September 2002	7 January 2018	6,512	Opened at the Vaudeville Theatre Moved to the Ambassadors Theatre on 27 September 2007

12	Chicago	M	18 October 1997	1 September 2012	6,187	This is the longest running revival Show opened at the Adelphi Theatre Moved to the Cambridge Theatre in April 2006 Moved to the Garrick Theatre in November 2011

13	Wicked	M	27 September 2006	5,202	Currently running at Apollo Victoria Theatre

14	Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story	M	12 October 1989	3 March 2002	5,140	Opened at the Victoria Palace Theatre Moved to the Strand Theatre (now the Novello Theatre) in October 1995

15	We Will Rock You	M	25 September 2002	31 May 2014	4,659

16	Billy Elliot the Musical	M	11 May 2005	9 April 2016	4,566

17	Miss Saigon	M	20 September 1989	30 October 1999	4,264

18	Thriller - Live	R	26 January 2009	4,186	Currently running at Lyric Theatre

19	Jersey Boys	M	18 March 2008	26 March 2017	3,787

20	The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)	P	7 March 1996	3 April 2005	3,744

21	The 39 Steps	P	14 September 2006	5 September 2015	3,731

22	Jesus Christ Superstar	M	9 August 1972	23 August 1980	3,357

23	Me and My Girl	M	12 February 1985	16 January 1993	3,303	This is a revival of the 1937 musical.

24	Evita	M	21 June 1978	18 February 1986	3,176

25	Matilda	M	24 November 2011	3,048	Currently running at Cambridge Theatre

Sentence(s)

The Phantom of the Opera (1986 musical) is the third longest running West End musical, after Les Misérables and The Mousetrap.

final_sentence: The Phantom of the Opera (1986 musical) is the third longest running West End musical, after Les Misérables and The Mousetrap.