How Very Hannah

BLESS MY SOUL, Luke Brady's on a roll… into the studio!! 🎭 Luke is currently playing Hercules at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane and what a delightful chat we had this week.

We get into what it's actually like working for Disney, why the scale of Hercules is unlike anything he's done before, and how a chance conversation with Imelda Staunton mid-rehearsal completely changed how he approaches his craft. 

Luke also talks about going back to RADA after years of professional work, why he doesn't have dream roles (and actually loves that about this career), and we both share in what it means to feel genuinely grateful for being in work in this industry.

We also go deep on the history of Theatre Royal Drury Lane… from ghosts to murder I could not believe what I was hearing?! Plus we play How Stagey Are You, answer a listener confession about being the unwilling agony aunt of a youth theatre group, and I quiz Luke on Wicked with mixed results. 👀

New episodes every Thursday at 7am! Hit FOLLOW or SUBSCRIBE so you never miss an ep ✨

💌 Send your Confessions, hotline questions and stagey dares to [email protected] or slide into the DMs @howvery_hannah

🎟️  And come see HOW VERY HANNAH LIVE for one night only in the West End!!** I’m heading to The Garrick Theatre on Sunday 24th May for a very special evening... There are still some tickets left, so get yours right now  👉🏼 [https://www.aegpresents.co.uk/event/how-very-hannah

🎟️ See Legally Blonde on tour!!
Book your tickets 👉🏼 https://legallyblondeshow.com/

And make sure to follow the pod EVERYWHERE!
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/howvery_hannah
TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@howvery_hannah

ps BUY MY BOOK - https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/476785/les-quizerables-by-lowther-hannah/9781529978964

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Produced by Bear Lane Productions 🎙️
Music by Joe Truscott 🎵

My first ever Legally Blonde cast guest is HERE!!!

and honestly it was worth the wait, as I'm joined this week by the incredible Jocasta Almgill, AKA the iconic Brooke Wyndham herself 🎉

We get into what it's actually like playing Brooke - including six months of skipping training, the press night skipping rope incident that drew actual blood (I'm so sorry Daisy), and why Jocasta never in a million years thought this role was for her.

We also talk about her INCREDIBLE career - from Dream Girls at the Savoy with the Amber Riley(!!!), In The Heights in a literal tent with a steam train, West Side Story at the Royal Exchange, and why she's become one of the biggest advocates for regional theatre going.

We also get into body confidence, representation on stage, mid show swing ons, and answer a listener confession about being told you're "watchable but hard to cast" - which honestly? We think might be the best thing a casting director has ever said 👀

New episodes every Thursday at 7am! Hit FOLLOW or SUBSCRIBE so you never miss an ep ✨

💌 Send your Confessions, hotline questions and stagey dares to [email protected] or slide into the DMs @howvery_hannah

🎟️ For ONE NIGHT ONLY see my live show in the West End!! How Very Hannah is heading to The Garrick Theatre on Sunday 24th May for a very special evening... Tickets are on sale now 👉🏼 ⁠https://www.aegpresents.co.uk/event/how-very-hannah/⁠

🎟️ See Legally Blonde on tour!! Book your tickets 👉🏼 https://legallyblondeshow.com/⁠

And make sure to follow the pod EVERYWHERE! Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/howvery_hannah TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@howvery_hannah

ps BUY MY BOOK - https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/476785/les-quizerables-by-lowther-hannah/9781529978964

—

Produced by Bear Lane Productions 🎙️ Music by Joe Truscott 🎵

It's just me this week!! Well, almost… but we'll get to that. 🤭

I'm fresh off what I can only describe as the most chaotic week of my entire career (so far) in Milton Keynes, and I needed to sit down and tell you all about it!! Mid-show swing ons, show stops, four different people playing Margot in one week, concert versions nobody planned for - Milton Keynes, you will go down in history. 🎭

I'm also catching you up on MY LIVE WEST END SHOW at the Garrick next month, what the helly!! thoughts on what comes next after this contract, and why I would genuinely be happy doing Legally Blonde for the rest of my life and never auditioning again. Delulu? Maybe. But I mean it.

AND I have a very special guest popping in - my manager Lucy Stewart Adams, who trained in musical theatre, decided it wasn't for her, and is now honestly the most important person in my career. We answer a listener hotline question about when you know musical theatre might not be the right path, and Lucy talks about why leaving performing wasn't failure - it was the best decision she ever made.

It's a good one, so enjoy stagey queensss ✨

New episodes every Thursday at 7am! Hit FOLLOW or SUBSCRIBE so you never miss an ep!!

💌 Send your Confessions, hotline questions and stagey dares to [email protected] or slide into the DMs @howvery_hannah

🎟️ For ONE NIGHT ONLY see my live show in the West End!! How Very Hannah is heading to The Garrick Theatre on Sunday 24th May for a very special evening... Tickets are on sale now 👉🏼 ⁠https://www.aegpresents.co.uk/event/how-very-hannah/⁠

🎟️ See Legally Blonde on tour!! Book your tickets 👉🏼 https://legallyblondeshow.com/⁠

And make sure to follow the pod EVERYWHERE! Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/howvery_hannah TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@howvery_hannah

ps BUY MY BOOK - https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/476785/les-quizerables-by-lowther-hannah/9781529978964

—

Produced by Bear Lane Productions 🎙️ Music by Joe Truscott 🎵

I have been FANGIRLING over this guest for so long and I'm not even slightly sorry about it!!

Mitch Wood is the comedy genius behind the musical theatre videos that are constantly flying around our group chats - and this week he’s in London and in the studio!!!🎭

We get into how it all started - from his specialty musical theatre high school in Toronto to drama college, working professionally, and then turning to content during the pandemic just to keep his creativity alive.

Mitch also gets real about the fact that viral views don't automatically equal money, why he's still very much an active performer and director, and what it actually takes to make improv look that effortless.

We also chat about his live show, the dream of bringing the theatre world to mainstream TV, manifesting the MC in Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club (it's been said, it has to happen now), and we attempt - I say attempt - an improv game together… eep.

New episodes every Thursday at 7am! Hit FOLLOW or SUBSCRIBE so you never miss an ep ✨

💌 Send your Confessions, hotline questions and stagey dares to [email protected] or slide into the DMs @howvery_hannah

🎟️ For ONE NIGHT ONLY see my live show in the West End!! How Very Hannah is heading to The Garrick Theatre on Sunday 24th May for a very special evening... Tickets are on sale now 👉🏼 ⁠https://www.aegpresents.co.uk/event/how-very-hannah/⁠

🎟️ See Legally Blonde on tour!! Book your tickets 👉🏼 https://legallyblondeshow.com/⁠

💌 Get in touch with your Confessions, hotline questions and stagey dares… Email [email protected] or slide into the DMs @howvery_hannah

And make sure to follow the pod EVERYWHERE! Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/howvery_hannah TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@howvery_hannah

ps BUY MY BOOK - https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/476785/les-quizerables-by-lowther-hannah/9781529978964

—

Produced by Bear Lane Productions 🎙️ Music by Joe Truscott 🎵

Ad: This episode was made in partnership with The National Lottery ✨

 Guys, it's ALMOST HERE!! The National Lottery's Big Night of Musicals is back on 28th March and this week I'm giving you a backstage pass to get you ready for a very stagey night of TV!! 🎭🎉

The National Lottery has surpassed £700 million of investment into arts, culture and heritage across Greater Manchester since 1994, and over 31 years National Lottery players have contributed £1.4 billion to 29,000 theatre-related projects across the UK.

Every time you buy a lottery ticket, you're contributing to good causes - £32 million every single week. So we are celebrating!! 🎭

In this special episode, Seann Miley Moore and Julianne Pundan from Miss Saigon stopped by to talk professional debuts and iconic roles. Andy Nyman who plays Max in The Producers had some genuinely brilliant things to say about why musical theatre matters so much right now. And last but not least, Sam Ryder get real about his upcoming role of Jesus himself - and we got into everything from terror dreams to rebuilt sheds.

Make sure you tune in to the National Lottery's Big Night of Musicals on 28th March on BBC -featuring Wicked, Jesus Christ Superstar, Miss Saigon, The Producers, Paddington the Musical, The Lion King, Annie, Oliver!, The Choir of Man, I'm Every Woman - The Chaka Khan Musical, Sunny Afternoon and a very special Disney medley, hosted by the brilliant Jason Manford.

The National Lottery’s Big Night of Musicals will be broadcast on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on 28 March 2026 (at 7.45pm) in a 90-minute special, with a compilation programme of highlights from previous years currently available on BBC iPlayer.

And in the meantime, be sure to hit SUBSCRIBE so you never miss a How Very Hanna episode every Thursday at 7am! ✨

💌 Send your Confessions, hotline questions and stagey dares to [email protected] or slide into the DMs @howvery_hannah
—

🎟️  For ONE NIGHT ONLY see my live show in the West End!! How Very Hannah is heading to The Garrick Theatre on Sunday 24th May for a very special evening... 
Tickets are on sale now  👉🏼 https://www.aegpresents.co.uk/event/how-very-hannah/⁠

🎟️ See Legally Blonde on tour!!
Book your tickets 👉🏼 https://legallyblondeshow.com/

💌  Get in touch with your Confessions, hotline questions and stagey dares… 
Email [email protected] or slide into the DMs @howvery_hannah

And make sure to follow the pod EVERYWHERE!
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/howvery_hannah
TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@howvery_hannah

ps BUY MY BOOK - https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/476785/les-quizerables-by-lowther-hannah/9781529978964

—

Produced by Bear Lane Productions 🎙️
Music by Joe Truscott 🎵

I'm back in the studio this week and I am joined by the one and only Maddie Grace Jepson!! 😛

You'll know her from her iconic TikToks (and that tongue lol) that took over lockdown and never really stopped - and now she's living her absolute theatre girl dream playing Lorraine Baines in Back to the Future in the West End, and we had SO much to catch up on.

We get into what it's actually like juggling a West End contract with keeping up with content - the exhaustion, the decision fatigue, and the guilt of being a bad texter (relatable honestly).

Maddie also opens up about the negativity that came with the Back to the Future announcement, why the "she was just handed the role" comments couldn't be further from the truth, and what it actually took to get into that audition room in the first place.

We also do a full double show day in the life as Lorraine Baines, chat lockdown graduations, the Shaftesbury showcase that never happened, and why she thinks the gap between drama school and now was actually the best thing for her.

Oh, and we play When You Know The Words musical theatre edition and manifest our dream roles on the pod - which means they legally have to come true now.

New episodes every Thursday at 7am!Hit FOLLOW or SUBSCRIBE so you never miss an ep ✨

💌 Send your Confessions, hotline questions and stagey dares to ⁠[email protected]⁠ or slide into the DMs @howvery_hannah

Follow Maddie on socials!

🎟️ For ONE NIGHT ONLY see my live show in the West End!! How Very Hannah is heading to The Garrick Theatre on Sunday 24th May for a very special evening...

Tickets are on sale now 👉🏼 ⁠⁠https://www.aegpresents.co.uk/event/how-very-hannah/⁠⁠

🎟️ See Legally Blonde on tour!!
Book your tickets 👉🏼 ⁠https://legallyblondeshow.com/⁠⁠

ps BUY MY BOOK - ⁠https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/476785/les-quizerables-by-lowther-hannah/9781529978964⁠

Produced by Bear Lane Productions 🎙️
Music by Joe Truscott 🎵

Okay so I basically crashed the What's On Stage Awards red carpet and it was CHAOS (the good kind) 🎭✨

I'm out of the studio, mic in hand, Red Bull in system, dangling dress bit getting stood on - and somehow I managed to track down some of the biggest names in musical theatre for chats, confessions and of course… a How Very Dare You moment or two.

This week's ep includes red carpet outfit of the days, wrong-key singing attempts and genuinely unhinged energy throughout (from me, obviously), and International Women's Day shoutouts from across the industry… some iconic, some unexpected, all brilliant ✨

PLUS an exclusive(ish) that I had to whisper very quietly on the carpet 👀

so in NO PARTICULAR ORDER (deeeeep breath) the stagey icons featured are…

Millie O'Connell, Natalie Paris, Aimie Atkinson, Maiya Quansah-Breed & Grace Mouat (the OG Six Queens!!)

Tobias Turley, Leonor Correia, Caitlin Tipping & Luke Bayer (the NEW High School Musical cast)

Ore Oduba & Curtis Patrick (Young Frankenstein)

Lucie Jones and her lovely boyfriend (and bump!)

David Cumming & Zoë Roberts (Operation Mincemeat)

Stevie Doc & Harry Tunningley (The Devil Wears Prada)

Emma Kingston

Strictly’s Nikita Kuzmin & partner Lauren Jaine

Henry Lewis (A Comedy About Spies)

Gracie McDonigal & Chumisa Dornford-May (Into The Woods)

 @VivianPanka  

Claire Richards, Lee Latchford-Evans & Faye Tozer (Here & Now / STEPS!)

Mitch Wood (if you don’t know, get to know)

Alex Young, Danny Becker, Peter McGovern & Roshani Abbey (Operation Mincemeat)

Hiba Elchikhe

Joel Harper-Jackson

Jena Pandya & Simon Pollard (Come Fall In Love)

Ricardo P Lloyd (Actor & Patron of GoLiveTheatre 🎭)

The Old Joint Stock Pub Birmingham team (who are also HVH fans)

okay… I THINK that’s everyone… so let’s get on with the stagey chaossss !! 🎉

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New episodes every Thursday at 7am!
Hit FOLLOW or SUBSCRIBE so you never miss an ep ✨

💌 Send your Confessions, hotline questions and stagey dares to ⁠[email protected]⁠ or slide into the DMs @howvery_hannah

—
🎟️ For ONE NIGHT ONLY see my live show in the West End!! 
How Very Hannah is heading to The Garrick Theatre on Sunday 24th May for a very special evening...
Tickets are on sale now 👉🏼 ⁠⁠https://www.aegpresents.co.uk/event/how-very-hannah/⁠⁠

🎟️ See Legally Blonde on tour!!
Book your tickets 👉🏼 ⁠https://legallyblondeshow.com/⁠⁠

💌  Get in touch with your Confessions, hotline questions and stagey dares…Email ⁠[email protected]⁠ or slide into the DMs @howvery_hannah

And make sure to follow the pod EVERYWHERE!
Instagram - ⁠https://www.instagram.com/howvery_hannah⁠
TikTok - ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@howvery_hannah⁠

ps BUY MY BOOK - ⁠https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/476785/les-quizerables-by-lowther-hannah/9781529978964⁠
—
Produced by Bear Lane Productions 🎙️
Music by Joe Truscott 🎵

Besties reunited… and this week he’s getting an entire ep (🤪) it’s Tom Scanlon!!

Currently in Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club - AND covering Cliff, we get into what it’s actually like stepping into a lead track in a show that’s emotionally heavy, why the post-show decompression is so real, and how stage door feels totally different when you’re trying to come down from the world of the show.

Tom also chats about his Cabaret journey - including how he didn’t even think he wanted the job at first, how surreal it is having major names above the door, and what it’s like when a show changes leads constantly.

Plus after a bit of Heathers nostalgia, we have a DMC on theatre and friendships with a listener confession.

And after many requests and outcries from you guys… How Very Dare You is BACK!! Mics in hand, we’re back in Soho for some chaos in public (complete with monologues and corner work). ENJOY QUEENS!!!

Follow Tom on TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@thetomscanlon and on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/tomscanlon/

🎭 and see him in Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club!! 👉  https://kitkat.club/cabaret-london/ (Note, it’s recommended children younger than 13 do not attend as this show contains adult content - see online for more info!)

New episodes every Thursday at 7am! Hit FOLLOW or SUBSCRIBE to never miss an ep ✨

🎟️ For ONE NIGHT ONLY see my live show in the West End!! How Very Hannah is heading to The Garrick Theatre on Sunday 24th May for a very special evening... Tickets are on sale now 👉🏼 ⁠https://www.aegpresents.co.uk/event/how-very-hannah/⁠

🎟️ See Legally Blonde on tour!! Book your tickets 👉🏼 https://legallyblondeshow.com/⁠

💌 Get in touch with your Confessions, hotline questions and stagey dares… Email [email protected] or slide into the DMs @howvery_hannah

And make sure to follow the pod EVERYWHERE! Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/howvery_hannah TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@howvery_hannah

ps BUY MY BOOK - https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/476785/les-quizerables-by-lowther-hannah/9781529978964

—

Produced by Bear Lane Productions 🎙️ Music by Joe Truscott 🎵

It’s happened… Legally Blonde is OPEN and I’ve officially debuted as Elle Woods… earlier than expected (What the HELLY !!) 🎀

This solo ep is the full opening week debrief - how Leicester has been, what it’s like being Margot (and living my best trio life), and how my Elle debut was meant to be weeks away… until it suddenly wasn’t.

I also want to say this upfront - it’s a weird feeling celebrating when someone’s unwell, and I’m so grateful I got to go on, but I’m really aware it wasn’t ideal circumstances. That said, this whole week has reminded me more than ever why swings and covers are absolute HEROES of musical theatre 🥹🥹

So settle in and get ready for on-stage chaos, imposter syndrome realness, saying yes before you feel ready, and the cast energy that carried LB through!

Plus - stage door, signing your books (my HEART), and all the details for How Very Hannah Live at the Garrick on 24th May (including meet & greet tickets if you want a guaranteed hello!)

EEK. Okay. So much to debrief - hope you love it 💖

New episodes every Thursday at 7am! Hit FOLLOW or SUBSCRIBE to never miss an ep ✨

🎟️ For ONE NIGHT ONLY see my live show in the West End!! How Very Hannah is heading to The Garrick Theatre on Sunday 24th May for a very special evening... Tickets are on sale now 👉🏼 ⁠https://www.aegpresents.co.uk/event/how-very-hannah/⁠

🎟️ See Legally Blonde on tour!! Book your tickets 👉🏼 https://legallyblondeshow.com/⁠

💌 Want to send your hotlines, dilemmas or questions? Email [email protected] or slide into the DMs @howvery_hannah

And make sure to follow the pod EVERYWHERE!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/howvery_hannah TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@howvery_hannah

BUY MY BOOK - https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/476785/les-quizerables-by-lowther-hannah/9781529978964

—

Produced by Bear Lane Productions 🎙️ 
Music by Joe Truscott 🎵

On THURSDAYS we wear pink… and talk Mean Girls, Heathers, Legally Blonde AND handling the internet when it’s doing the most…

This week I’m joined by my friend – and actual real-life Regina George – Vivian Panka. We met doing the Heathers movie together (she was Heather Duke, I was New Wave Party Girl…), and now she’s leading the UK & Ireland tour of Mean Girls as Queen Bee herself.

Vivian takes us inside the *wild* audition process: going in for Gretchen, asking to be seen for Regina, last-minute recalls, and finding out she’d booked it while on holiday listening to the cast album on repeat.

We also get into some big stuff:

- Being the first black Regina George and what it means to see yourself in roles you weren’t “traditionally” cast in
- Why colour ≠ “type”, and how she’s gone from 9 to 5 to Mean Girls
- Learning English from a bootleg of High School Musical 2 (yes, really) and why everyone thinks she’s American
- The reality of Stage Door – vocal health, boundaries, safety, weird encounters and why sometimes it *is* okay to slip out the back

Hope you love this one – it’s stagey, sooo fetch and a little bit therapeutic 🫶🏼

New episodes every Thursday at 7am! 
Hit FOLLOW or SUBSCRIBE to never miss an ep ✨

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🎟️ See Vivian in Mean Girls (UK & Ireland Tour) – https://meangirlsmusical.com/

🎧 Watch us together in Heathers: The Musical – now streaming on Amazon Prime Video

🎟️ See me in Legally Blonde on tour!!
Book your tickets 👉🏼 https://legallyblondeshow.com

💌  Want to send your hotlines, dilemmas or questions? 
Email [email protected] or slide into the DMs @howvery_hannah

And make sure to follow the pod EVERYWHERE!
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/howvery_hannah
TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@howvery_hannah

BUY MY BOOK - https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/476785/les-quizerables-by-lowther-hannah/9781529978964

Produced by Bear Lane Productions 🎙️
Music by Joe Truscott 🎵