THE BOOK
GOOD OMENS: THE NICE AND ACCURATE PROPHECIES OF AGNES NUTTER, WITCH was written collaboratively by English authors Sir Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman and first published in 1990.
In his lifetime Terry Pratchett was a phenomenon of an author -- only eclipsed as the UK’s highest selling author in 2005 by JK Rowling. For almost twenty years Pratchett published two novels a annually, and was solely responsible for over 1% of all book sales in the UK. His books have sold over 80 million copies, been translated in more than 30 languages, and he has the distinction of being the UK’s most shoplifted novelist.
Neil Gaiman has sold a conservatively estimated 45 million plus copies of his works, putting him in the top 20 most successful fantasy authors of all time. His novels have enjoyed hugely successful adaptations including Sandman (adapted for Netflix), Coraline (feature film and musical), Lucifer (five seasons on Fox and Netflix), American Gods (three seasons on Starz), and most recently The Ocean at the End of the Lane adapted for the stage by the National Theatre, playing the West End in 2021 and presently touring.
THE TV SERIES
Amazon and BBC’s television adaptation of GOOD OMENS, starring Michael Sheen and David Tennant, debuted in 2019 followed by Season 2 in 2023 and Season 3 in 2026.
THE MUSICAL
The musical adaptation of GOOD OMENS has maintained the thrilling fantasy and supernatural elements of the novel. We ultimately envision GOOD OMENS as a major West End fantasy musical that might be considered an alternative to Harry Potter and the Cursed Child but you know, for cynical people.
We want to lean on pure theatrical magic, both old and new, to bring flying mopeds, ascending angels, and burning Bentleys to the stage. Ingenuity and inventiveness in design and direction will bring to the life a unique experience that combines comedy, fantasy, music, and magic.
Terry and Neil granted Vicki Larnach and Jim Hare their permission to begin adapting GOOD OMENS as a musical prior to Terry’s passing and they began the task of adaptation. Jay joined the team, and as a trio we have continued to evolve GOOD OMENS through countless revisions and a number of private development readings.
In 2017 the full libretto and score was presented in a one-night reading at the Seymour Centre attended by a public audience of over 500. Another full year of revisions ensued, informed by the overwhelmingly positive response to the 2017 reading. We even managed to trim act one by twenty minutes and aimed to make our telling of this sprawling and complex story as efficient, effective and theatrical as possible.
In 2019, a semi-staged development was produced in association with Merrigong Theatre Company, playing to public audience for three performances. This event marked the first time GOOD OMENS would be shown ‘on its feet’ with our revised libretto and score. This stripped back, black-box presentation with a full cast and 7-piece orchestra was rehearsed over three weeks and provided an excellent insight into the strength and potential of this material without any of the theatrical accoutrements we intend to add later. The presentation demonstrated the clarity of complex story-telling and character, the hum-ability of the musical score, and suggested the lasting impact this new Australian musical could have on audiences globally.
In 2020 we presented an archival recording of the 2019 development for Neil Gaiman and Rob Wilkins (Terry’s earthly proxy) in London. Neil’s greatest compliment to us and our work on adapting his show was to say that he wished Terry could have been here to see it.
GOOD OMENS is on the cusp of becoming music theatre’s most inventive, unexpected and intriguing new prospect.