Imelda Staunton and John Lithgow win at Olivier Awards
By Charlotte McLaughlin, PA Senior Entertainment Reporter
Dame Imelda Staunton won a fifth Olivier, and US actor John Lithgow took aim at the Trump administration, as he picked up an honour at the UK’s most prestigious theatre awards.
Harry Potter and The Crown star Dame Imelda, 69, took home her latest Olivier on Sunday, this time for best actress in a musical for the London revival of classic musical Hello, Dolly!, about a middle-aged widow trying to marry a millionaire.
The biggest winners of the 2025 Olivier Awards were the musical version of The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button, a revival of Fiddler On The Roof, and Giant, about children’s author Roald Dahl grappling with whether to make a public apology for an article deemed antisemitic.
They earned three awards each, with Giant winning best new play, best actor for Lithgow, who plays Dahl, and best actor in a supporting role for English actor Elliot Levey.
On stage, the 79-year-old Conclave star told the audience that he wanted to “assure you that the special relationship is still firmly intact”, between the UK and the US, after President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on British exports.
Lithgow also said that “it’s not always easy to welcome an American into your midst, and at this particular moment, it’s probably a little more complicated than usual”.
Backstage, he told the PA news agency that “hopefully, we (the US) are at the beginning of a period of restoration and reparation” citing Democratic senator Cory Booker’s 25-hour Senate speech urging a rejection of Mr Trump’s agenda.
Lithgow added that he did have hope, despite the “complete disaster of this administration”.
The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button, a reimagining of the original movie in which Hollywood actor Brad Pitt ages backwards, won best new musical, a best actor musical award for Lark Rise To Candleford actor John Dagleish, and outstanding musical contribution award.
Best actress went to Mrs Harris Goes To Paris star Lesley Manville, for Greek tragedy Oedipus at the Wyndham’s Theatre in London, while Emma star Romola Garai beat herself to win best actress in a supporting role for Annie Ernaux memoir The Years.
Manville said she felt “emotional”, because it was something she “felt very strongly about being” in.
Other winners included Bad Education star and Strictly Come Dancing finalist Layton Williams, for his role in musical parody Titanique, which also took the Noel Coward Award for best new entertainment or comedy play.
Dame Imelda’s first Olivier award came in 1985, for her supporting roles in A Chorus Of Disapproval and The Corn Is Green, and was followed by an award for Into The Woods in 1991.
In 2013, she won the best actress in a musical award for her role in Sweeney Todd, and in 2016 she won in the same category for her role as Mama Rose in Gypsy.
The In Memoriam segment paid tribute to stars from the theatre world, including Oscar nominee Dame Joan Plowright, King Lear actor Timothy West, Downton Abbey star Dame Maggie Smith, singer Linda Nolan, Top Gun star Val Kilmer, The Lord Of The Rings film series actor Bernard Hill, and Star Wars franchise star James Earl Jones.
The annual event, which celebrates theatrical productions, was co-hosted by British singer Beverley Knight and Pose star Billy Porter at the Royal Albert Hall in London.