A new co-production with the Everyman & Playhouse Theatres and Octagon Theatre Bolton is bringing a 30th anniversary revival of The Memory of Water by Shelagh Stephenson to the stage in Spring 2026.

A powerful and darkly funny family drama, Lotte Wakeham (Artistic Director at Octagon Theatre Bolton) directs a stellar cast including Vicky Binns (Coronation Street, Emmerdale), Victoria Brazier (The Book Thief, Octagon Theatre), Helen Flanagan (Coronation Street) and Polly Lister (Animal Farm, Around the World in 80 Days); with further casting to be announced.

Set in the Winter of 1996 as The Spice Girls topped the charts, football had failed to come home, and Dolly the Sheep had just been cloned, The Memory of Water tells the story of Mary, Teresa and Catherine. Three sisters who return to their Northern childhood home for the first time in years, for their mother’s funeral. As they sort through clothes, keepsakes and ghosts of the past, the whisky flows, resentments surface, and long-held silences crack open with unexpected laughter.

Hilarious yet deeply moving, The Memory of Water explores families, grief, and the unreliable stories we tell about our pasts. Winner of the Olivier Award for Best Comedy, Shelagh Stephenson’s modern classic remains as sharp, funny, and heartfelt today as it was when it premiered in 1996.

Following a collaboration on One Man, Two Guvnors in 2022 this exciting partnership once again brings together two of the North West’s leading producing theatres to celebrate one of the most beloved British plays of the past three decades.


Lotte Wakeham, Director and Artistic Director of the Octagon Theatre Bolton, said:

“The Memory of Water is one of those rare plays that makes you laugh out loud and then catches you off guard with its emotional truth. I’m thrilled to be directing this special 30th anniversary revival, and to be collaborating once again with our wonderful friends at Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse.”

Nathan Powell, Creative Director of Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse added:

“This is a beautiful story about family — full of love, laughter, and the kind of chaos that feels instantly familiar. Stephenson captures how we all remember things differently, and how those memories shape who we are. It’s moving, funny, and deeply relatable — a perfect fit for the Everyman stage.”

The Memory of Water opens at the Octagon Theatre Bolton from Thursday 29 January – Saturday 21 February 2026, before transferring to the Liverpool Everyman Theatre from Wednesday 25 February – Saturday 14 March 2026.

Tickets are on sale now through the Everyman & Playhouse theatres website here.
Find out more shows coming to stages across Liverpool here.

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