Andrea Bocelli, James Blunt and Idina Menzel will lead the stars taking to the stage at the Royal Variety Performance 2026.

Comedian Jason Manford will host for the third time, making this his sixth appearance on The Royal Variety Performance in line with Tommy Cooper and Ken Dodd.

Maestro Italian tenor Bocelli will make an appearance to celebrate 30 years since he first became an international star.

Menzel, the original Elphaba in Wicked, will perform her rendition of The Wizard & I alongside the musical’s composer Stephen Schwartz.

Celebrity Traitors star Blunt will perform on the night, as will former Desperate Housewives star Vanessa Williams, who will sing her 1992 hit Save The Best For Last.

Singer Jack Savoretti will make his Royal Variety debut while viewers will also see a medley from the revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s Jesus Christ Superstar, led by singer Sam Ryder.

Ahead of its return to the West End, the cast of Billy Elliot the Musical will perform the song Electricity.

There will also be a preview performance of The Greatest Show from the upcoming West End musical The Greatest Showman.

Britain’s Got Talent winners The Hawkstone Farmers’ Choir will perform after becoming the first choir to ever win the show this year.

The evening will also feature comedy from Mock The Week star Milton Jones as well as comedian Phil Wang.

Acrobatic duo The Ramadhani Brothers and head balancer Veronika Ivanova from the circus show Cirque Alice will make their European debuts during the performance.

The musical Operation Mincemeat will bring current and original cast members together as they are joined on stage by the Royal Naval Association Choir, members of The Band of His Majesty’s Royal Marines, The Band of the Irish Guards and the Band of the Welsh Guards Fanfare Team.

Tenor Alfie Boe will also lead the national anthem.

Host Manford said: “What a huge privilege to be asked to host The Royal Variety Performance for a third time.

“It’s an amazing line-up in aid of a wonderful charity, so I can’t wait for everybody to see what surprises we have up our sleeves this year.”

The Royal Variety Performance 2026 will air in December.