List of the longest - running West End shows - wikipedia List of the longest - running West End shows This is a list of long running shows ( 3,000 performances or more ) in the West End, a well known professional theatre district in London. Contents 1 List 2 See also 3 Notes 4 References 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. An asterisk indicates an announced closing date for a currently - running show. All currently - running shows are updated as of 8 January 2018, unless otherwise stated. # Title Genre Opening date Closing date Performances The Mousetrap 25 November 1952 27,174 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. Martin 's Theatre, retaining initial run status 17 December 1976 -- 10,000 performances 16 December 2000 -- 20,000 performances 18 November 2012 - 25,000 performances 1965 & 1999 -- Sets, costumes and props replaced Les Misérables 8 October 1985 13,341 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. Transferred to the Queen 's Theatre in April 2004, where it is still running. The Phantom of the Opera 9 October 1986 13,008 Currently running at Her Majesty 's Theatre The Woman in Black 7 June 1989 11,704 Currently running at Fortune Theatre Blood Brothers 28 July 1988 10 November 2012 10,013 6 Cats 11 May 1981 11 May 2002 8,949 Opened in London at the New London Theatre The show closed on its 21st anniversary, where it was broadcast in Covent Garden for those who could n'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 ! 6 April 1999 7,871 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 19 October 1999 7,634 Currently running at Lyceum Theatre 9 Starlight Express 27 March 1984 12 January 2002 7,406 10 No Sex Please, We 're British 3 June 1971 16 January 1987 6,761 11 Stomp 25 September 2002 7 January 2018 6,512 Opened at the Vaudeville Theatre Moved to the Ambassadors Theatre on 27 September 2007 12 Chicago 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 Buddy -- The Buddy Holly Story 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 14 Wicked 27 September 2006 4,746 Currently running at Apollo Victoria Theatre 15 We Will Rock You 25 September 2002 31 May 2014 4,659 16 Billy Elliot the Musical 11 May 2005 9 April 2016 4,566 17 Miss Saigon 20 September 1989 30 October 1999 4,264 18 Jersey Boys 18 March 2008 26 March 2017 3,787 19 Thriller - Live 26 January 2009 3,745 Currently running at Lyric Theatre 20 The Complete Works of William Shakespeare ( Abridged ) 7 March 1996 3 April 2005 3,744 21 The 39 Steps 14 September 2006 5 September 2015 3,731 22 Jesus Christ Superstar 9 August 1972 23 August 1980 3,357 23 Me and My Girl 12 February 1985 16 January 1993 3,303 This is a revival of the 1937 musical. 24 Evita 21 June 1978 18 February 1986 3,176 Oh ! Calcutta ! which opened in the West End on 30 September 1970 and closed in either January or February 1980, would have approximately 3,800 performances, but no closing date is known, so proper ranking can not be made. The next longest running play is There 's a Girl in My Soup ( 1966 -- 1973 ). The next longest running musical is Oliver ! ( 1960 -- 1966 ). See also Long - running musical theatre productions List of the longest - running Broadway shows Notes Jump up ^ According to the show 's official Facebook. Source Jump up ^ Exact number came from musicalheaven.com and This Is Theatre ; 2900 given by Society of London Theatre is an estimate. Jump up ^ The Duchess Theatre 's next production was Private Lives, which was reviewed in The Times on 8 March 1980 ; therefore Oh ! Calcutta ! must have closed in the first two months of 1980. References `` Longest running shows in West End history ''. Society of London Theatre. 4 July 2017. Retrieved 31 July 2017. Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_the_longest-running_West_End_shows&oldid=823615474 '' Categories : West End musicals West End plays West End theatre Lists of superlatives Hidden categories : Use dmy dates from August 2017 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Add links This page was last edited on 2 February 2018, at 09 : 46 ( UTC ). Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: longest running play in london's west end
Answer: The Mousetrap