The Wanted's Jay McGuiness teams up with ex-Casualty, Emmerdale and Hollyoaks actors in supernatural thriller heading to Sheffield

The play 2:22 – A Ghost Story visits the Lyceum Theatre from February 13-17, 2024 after clocking up record-breaking seasons at five West End theatres.Jay McGuiness (The Wanted, BIG! The Musical, Rip It Up), Fiona Wade (Emmerdale, Silent Witness), George Rainsford (Call the Midwife, Casualty) and Vera Chok (Hollyoaks, Cobra) are drawn together in a story in which secrets emerge and ghosts may or may not appear.Jenny believes her new home is haunted, but her husband Sam isn’t having any of it. They argue with their first dinner guests, old friend Lauren and new partner Ben. Can the dead really walk again? Belief and scepticism clash, but something feels strange and frightening, and that something is getting closer, so they’re going to stay up... until 2:22... and then they’ll know.Jay McGuiness said: “The show is funny and it’s scary and it makes people’s hearts race. My character Ben is just a normal Cockney lad. He’s friendly, but he knows how he likes things done. But then he is placed in an environment that he is not designed for and I think the whole evening is quite challenging for him.”Vera Chok, who is cast as Ben’s girlfriend, said: “Lauren appears to be very loud and opinionated and maybe superficial but I think she’s motivated by a sense of not fitting in and being seen as a failure. You see her break down during the course of the evening which I love as an actress. It’s such an emotional journey to portray.”

Jay and Vera are among the seventh cast to perform in a touring production of 2:22 – A Ghost Story. Writer Danny Robins said: “I continue to be blown away by the success of this play. It demonstrates a huge appetite and curiosity for all things paranormal. It’s such a fun night out, and if chills give you thrills you’re in for a treat.”

Tickets, priced from £15, are available from www.sheffieldtheatres.co.uk