The Watermill Theatre is a producing theatre in Bagnor, Berkshire. It opened in 1967 in Bagnor Mill, a converted watermill on the River Lambourn.

Venue: Watermill Theatre
Address: Bagnor, Newbury, Berkshire, RG20 8AE, England
Town: Speen, GB

The Watermill Theatre is a producing theatre in Bagnor, Berkshire. It opened in 1967 in Bagnor Mill, a converted watermill on the River Lambourn. As a producing house, the theatre has staged works that have subsequently moved on to the West End, including the 2004 revival of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, which also transferred to Broadway in 2006. The theatre has become recognised in particular for its focus on actor-musician led productions, and for focusing on accessibility within theatre. In particular, the theatre has pioneered the concept of Integrated British Sign Language performances, which is a style of interpreted performance wherein the interpreters perform on stage as part of the cast, as opposed to remaining by the side of the stage. In 2024 the Watermill Theatre jointly won Theatre of the Year at The Stage Awards. The theatre is situated in Bagnor Mill, a former corn mill on the River Lambourn in Bagnor, Berkshire. The site is named in the Domesday Book, which references a watermill in Bagnor, though the current building is much more recent. It opened as a 113-seat amateur theatre in 1965, having been converted by David Gollins. In 1967 the theatre was expanded with the addition of a fly system and lighting control, and housed its first professional productions. In 1971, the auditorium was rebuilt to allow a capacity of 170. In 1981 the theatre was purchased by Jill Fraser, who sought to change it from a local repertory theatre into a producing house. In the 1990s, the Propeller company was formed at the theatre. In the early 21st century, the theatre staged a number of productions that subsequently transferred to the West End - including Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, and The Gondoliers. In the mid-2000s, Fraser sought to sell the theatre to ensure its long-term future. The "Save The Watermill" appeal was founded to raise funds to allow the board of trustees to purchase the theatre. Fraser died from cancer in Februar