Soap legend Jill to star in anniversary shows

AWARD-WINNING stage and screen star Jill Halfpenny has been announced to star in the Royal Exchange Theatre's 50th anniversary year of shows.

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Jill Halfpenny to star in new Royal Exchange Theatre production of Private Lives in March 2026

Former Waterloo Road, EastEnders and Girl Taken star Jill will return to the Royal Exchange Theatre to star as Amanda Prynne in Noel Coward's Private Lives from March. It will be her second time performing at the Manchester venue, following her critically acclaimed performance Shelagh Delanye’s A Taste of Honey in 2024.

The new roles comes after a busy period of TV filming for Jill, who is about to be seen in ITV's After the Flood which returns for its second series this January. Private Lives, Coward's 14th production at the Royal Exchange, runs from 27 March to 2 May 2026 as part of the theatre's 50th anniversary programme.