Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical

The Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical is an annual award presented by the Society of London Theatre in recognition of achievements in professional London theatre. The awards were established as the Society of West End Theatre Awards in 1976, and renamed in 1984 in honour of English actor and director Laurence Olivier.

Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical
Awarded for	Best Actor in a Musical
Location	England
Presented by	Society of London Theatre
First award	1979
Currently held by	John Dagleish for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2025)
Website	officiallondontheatre.com/olivier-awards/

This award was introduced in 1979, along with the award for Best Actress in a Musical. In 1977 and 1978, there had been a commingled actor/actress award for Best Performance in a Musical, won both times by an actress.

Winners and nominees

1970s

Year	Actor	Musical	Character
1979	Anton Rodgers	Songbook	Various Characters
	Tony Britton	My Fair Lady	Henry Higgins
	Michael Crawford	Charlie and Algernon	Charlie
	Ben Cross	Chicago	Billy Flynn

1980s

Year	Actor	Musical	Character
1980	Denis Quilley	Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street	Sweeney Todd
	Tom Conti	They're Playing Our Song	Vernon
	John Diedrich	Oklahoma!	Curly McLain
	Denis Lawson	Pal Joey	Joey
1981	Michael Crawford	Barnum	P.T. Barnum
	Brian Blessed	Cats	Old Deuteronomy
	Henderson Forsythe	The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas	Sheriff Ed Earl Dodd
	Wayne Sleep	Cats	Mister Mistoffolees
1982	Roy Hudd	Underneath the Arches	Bud Flanagan
	Tim Curry	The Pirates of Penzance	The Pirate King
	Bob Hoskins	Guys and Dolls	Nathan Detroit
	Stephen Moore	Poppy	Jack Idle
1983	Denis Lawson	Mr. Cinders	Jim Lancaster
	George Costigan	Blood Brothers	Mickey
	Teddy Kempner	Snoopy	Snoopy
	Peter Woodward	Bashville	Cashel Byron
1984	Paul Clarkson	The Hired Man	John Tallentire
	Tim Flavin	On Your Toes	Junior
	David Kernan	The Ratepayers' Iolanthe	The Lord Chancellor
	Lon Satton	Starlight Express	Poppa
1985	Robert Lindsay	Me and My Girl	Bill Snibson
	Alun Armstrong	Les Misérables	M. Thénardier
	Mark McGann	Lennon	John Lennon
	Colm Wilkinson	Les Misérables	Jean Valjean
1986	Michael Crawford	The Phantom of the Opera	The Phantom of the Opera
	Paul Bentley	H.M.S. Pinafore	Captain Corcoran
	George Hearn	La Cage aux Folles	Albin
	Tommy Körberg	Chess	The Russian
1987	John Bardon	Kiss Me, Kate	Gangster 1
	Emil Wolk		Gangster 2
	Bernard Alane	Bless the Bride	Pierre Fontaine
	Mark McGann	Up on the Roof	Scott
	Gary Olsen		Keith
1988	Con O'Neill	Blood Brothers	Mickey
	Bille Brown	The Wizard of Oz	Miss Gulch / The Wicked Witch of the West
	Nickolas Grace	Candide	Voltaire / Dr. Pangloss
	Mickey Rooney	Sugar Babies	Mickey
1989/90	Jonathan Pryce	Miss Saigon	The Engineer
	Alun Armstrong	The Baker's Wife	Aimable
	Matthew Devitt	Return to the Forbidden Planet	Cookie
	Paul Hipp	Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story	Buddy Holly

1990s

Year	Actor	Musical	Character
1991	Philip Quast	Sunday in the Park with George	George
	Ian Bartholomew	Into the Woods	The Baker
	Bruce Hubbard	Show Boat	Joe
	Paul J. Medford	Five Guys Named Moe	Little Moe
1992	Alan Bennett	Talking Heads	Graham Whittaker
	Philip Bird	Good Rockin' Tonite	Unknown
	Jason Donovan	Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat	Joseph
	Damon Evans	Carmen Jones	Joe
1993	Henry Goodman	Assassins	Charles Guiteau
	Brent Carver	Kiss of the Spider Woman	Molina
	Michael Hayden	Carousel	Billy Bigelow
	Kirby Ward	Crazy for You	Bobby Child
1994	Alun Armstrong	Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street	Sweeney Todd
	Roger Allam	City of Angels	Stone
	David Burt	The Beggar's Opera	Captain Macheath
	Alan Cumming	Cabaret	Emcee
1995	John Gordon Sinclair	She Loves Me	Georg
	Peter Duncan	The Card	Denry Machin
	Tim Flavin	Crazy for You	Bobby Child
	Jonathan Pryce	Oliver!	Fagin
1996	Adrian Lester	Company	Robert
	Brian Conley	Jolson	Al Jolson
	Ross Lehman	Hot Mikado	Koko
	Clarke Peters	Unforgettable	Nat King Cole
1997	Robert Lindsay	Oliver!	Fagin
	Iain Glen	Martin Guerre	Martin Guerre
	Paul Keating	Tommy	Tommy
	Steven Pacey	By Jeeves	Bertie Wooster
1998	Philip Quast	The Fix	Grahame Chandler
	John Barrowman	The Fix	Cal Chandler
	Henry Goodman	Chicago	Billy Flynn
	Andrew C Wadsworth	Kiss Me, Kate	Fred Graham
1999	Entire Cast	Kat and the Kings	Entire Cast
	Adam Garcia	Saturday Night Fever	Tony Manero
	Hugh Jackman	Oklahoma!	Curly McLain
	Clarke Peters	Chicago	Billy Flynn

2000s

Year	Actor	Musical	Character
2000	Simon Russell Beale	Candide	Voltaire / Dr. Pangloss
	Rob Edwards	The Lion King	Scar
	Daniel Evans	Candide	Candide
	Ben Keaton	Animal Crackers	Spaulding
	Gus MacGregor	Buddy	Buddy Holly
2001	Daniel Evans	Merrily We Roll Along	Charley
	Jimmy Johnston	The Pirates of Penzance	The Pirate King
	Paul Robinson	Singin' in the Rain	Don Lockwood
	David Shannon	The Beautiful Game	John
2002	Philip Quast	South Pacific	Emile de Becque
	Brent Barrett	Kiss Me, Kate	Fred Graham
	Paul Keating	Closer to Heaven	Straight Dave
	Jonathan Pryce	My Fair Lady	Henry Higgins
2003	Alex Jennings	My Fair Lady	Henry Higgins
	Tim Flavin	My One and Only	Captain Billy Buck Chandler
	Michael Jibson	Our House	Joe Casey
	Euan Morton	Taboo	George
2004	David Bedella	Jerry Springer	Warm Up Man / Satan
	Graham Bickley	Ragtime	Tateh
	Michael Brandon	Jerry Springer	Jerry Springer
	Kevyn Morrow	Ragtime	Coalhouse
2005	Nathan Lane	The Producers	Max Bialystock
	Lee Evans	The Producers	Leo Bloom
	Paul Hegarty	Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street	Sweeney Todd
	Gavin Lee	Mary Poppins	Bert
2006	James Lomas, George Maguire and Liam Mower	Billy Elliot	Billy Elliot
	Douglas Hodge	Guys and Dolls	Nathan Detroit
	Ewan McGregor		Sky Masterson
2007	Daniel Evans	Sunday in the Park with George	George
	Tim Curry	Spamalot	King Arthur
	Clarke Peters	Porgy and Bess	Porgy
	Philip Quast	Evita	Juan Perón
2008	Michael Ball	Hairspray	Edna Turnblad
	Bertie Carvel	Parade	Leo
	Henry Goodman	Fiddler on the Roof	Tevye
	Bob Martin	The Drowsy Chaperone	Man in Chair
2009	Douglas Hodge	La Cage aux Folles	Albin
	Denis Lawson	La Cage aux Folles	Georges
	Ryan Molloy	Jersey Boys	Frankie Valli
	Matt Rawle	Zorro	Zorro

2010s

Year	Actor	Musical	Character
2010[1]	Aneurin Barnard	Spring Awakening	Melchior Gabor
	Rowan Atkinson	Oliver!	Fagin
	Bob Golding	Morecambe	Eric Morecambe
	Alexander Hanson	A Little Night Music	Frederik
	Tony Sheldon	Priscilla, Queen of the Desert	Bernadette
2011	David Thaxton	Passion	Giorgio
	Alex Gaumond	Legally Blonde	Emmett Forrest
	Ramin Karimloo	Love Never Dies	The Phantom
	Sahr Ngaujah	Fela!	Fela Kuti
	Michael Xavier	Love Story	Oliver Barratt IV
2012	Bertie Carvel	Matilda	Miss Trunchbull
	Nigel Lindsay	Shrek	Shrek
	Reece Shearsmith	Betty Blue Eyes	Gilbert Chilvers
	Paulo Szot	South Pacific	Emile de Becque
2013	Michael Ball	Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street	Sweeney Todd
	Alex Bourne	Kiss Me, Kate	Fred Graham
	Tom Chambers	Top Hat	Jerry
	Will Young	Cabaret	The Master of Ceremonies
2014	Gavin Creel	The Book of Mormon	Elder Price
	Jared Gertner	The Book of Mormon	Elder Cunningham
	Douglas Hodge	Charlie and the Chocolate Factory	Willy Wonka
	Kyle Scatliffe	The Scottsboro Boys	Haywood Patterson
2015	John Dagleish	Sunny Afternoon	Ray Davies
	Jon Jon Briones	Miss Saigon	The Engineer
	Brandon Victor Dixon	The Scottsboro Boys	Haywood Patterson
	Killian Donnelly	Memphis	Huey Calhoun
2016	Matt Henry	Kinky Boots	Lola / Simon
	Ian Bartholomew	Mrs Henderson Presents	Vivian Van Damm
	Killian Donnelly	Kinky Boots	Charlie Price
	David Haig	Guys and Dolls	Nathan Detroit
	Jamie Parker		Sky Masterson
2017	Andy Karl	Groundhog Day	Phil Connors
	David Fynn	School of Rock	Dewey Finn
	Tyrone Huntley	Jesus Christ Superstar	Judas Iscariot
	Charlie Stemp	Half a Sixpence	Arthur Kipps
2018	Giles Terera	Hamilton	Aaron Burr
	Ciarán Hinds	Girl from the North Country	Nick Lane
	John McCrea	Everybody's Talking About Jamie	Jamie New
	Jamael Westman	Hamilton	Alexander Hamilton
2019	Kobna Holdbrook-Smith	Tina	Ike Turner
	Marc Antolin	Little Shop of Horrors	Seymour Krelborn
	Zubin Varla	Fun Home	Bruce Bechdel
	Ken Watanabe	The King and I	The King of Siam

2020s

Year	Actor	Musical	Character
2020	Sam Tutty	Dear Evan Hansen	Evan Hansen
	Andy Nyman	Fiddler on the Roof	Tevye
	Charlie Stemp	Mary Poppins	Bert
	Jac Yarrow	Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat	Joseph
2021	Not presented due to extended closing of theatre productions during COVID-19 pandemic[A]
2022[A]	Eddie Redmayne	Cabaret	Emcee
	Olly Dobson	Back to the Future: The Musical	Marty McFly
	Arinzé Kene	Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical	Bob Marley
	Robert Lindsay	Anything Goes	Moonface Martin
2023	Arthur Darvill	Oklahoma!	Curly McLain
	Alon Abutbul	The Band's Visit	Tewfiq
	Julian Ovenden	South Pacific	Emile de Becque
	Andrew Rannells	Tammy Faye	Jim Bakker
2024
	Tom Francis	Sunset Boulevard	Joe Gillis
	David Cumming	Operation Mincemeat	Charles Cholmondeley, Doctor Pobil & Others
	Daniel Mays	Guys and Dolls	Nathan Detroit
	Charlie Stemp	Crazy for You	Bobby Child
2025
	John Dagleish	The Curious Case of Benjamin Button	Benjamin Button
	Adam Dannheisser	Fiddler on the Roof	Tevye
	Myles Frost	MJ the Musical	Michael Jackson
	Simon Lipkin	Oliver!	Fagin
	Jamie Muscato	Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812	Anatole Kuragin

1. Due to late March 2020^[2] to late July 2021^[3] closing of London theatre productions during the COVID-19 pandemic in England, the 2022 awards recognise productions that launched anytime from February 2020 to February 2022^[4]

Multiple awards and nominations for Best Actor

Awards

Three awards

• Philip Quast

Two awards

• Michael Ball
• Michael Crawford
• Robert Lindsay
• Daniel Evans
• John Dagleish

Nominations

Four nominations

• Philip Quast

Three nominations

• Alun Armstrong
• Michael Crawford
• Daniel Evans
• Tim Flavin
• Henry Goodman
• Douglas Hodge
• Denis Lawson
• Robert Lindsay
• Clarke Peters
• Jonathan Pryce
• Charlie Stemp

Two nominations

• Michael Ball
• Ian Bartholomow
• Bertie Carvel
• Tim Curry
• Killian Donnelly
• Paul Keating
• Mark McGann

Multiple awards and nominations for a character

Awards

3 awards

• Sweeney Todd from Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

2 awards

• George from Sunday in the Park with George

Nominations

4 nominations

• Fagin from Oliver!
• Nathan Detroit from Guys and Dolls
• Sweeney Todd from Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

3 nominations

• Billy Flynn from Chicago
• Bobby Child from Crazy for You
• Curly McLain from Oklahoma!
• Emcee in Cabaret
• Emile de Becque from South Pacific
• Fred Graham from Kiss Me, Kate
• Henry Higgins from My Fair Lady
• Tevye from Fiddler on the Roof

2 nominations

• Albin from La Cage aux Folles
• Bert from Mary Poppins
• George from Sunday in the Park with George
• Haywood Patterson from The Scottsboro Boys
• Joseph from Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
• Mickey from Blood Brothers
• Sky Masterson from Guys and Dolls
• The Engineer from Miss Saigon
• The Pirate King from The Pirates of Penzance

See also

• Tony Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical
• Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical