Port Talbot’s Paul Potts, the tenor who won Britain’s Got Talent with Nessun Dorma, is coming home to open his town’s rebuilt theatre.
He will sing at Yr Aelwyd on Saturday 27 February 2027, in a homecoming concert marking 20 years since his win. Yr Aelwyd, Welsh for The Hearth, is the new name for the Princess Royal Theatre in Civic Square.
Potts said he was “really excited and honoured to be chosen to open the newly refurbished theatre in Port Talbot”.
He said: “I’ve spent 20 years travelling the world and I’ve been incredibly lucky to perform in so many amazing places. But Port Talbot will always be home.”
From Britain’s Got Talent to Squid Game: 20 years of Paul Potts’ Nessun Dorma
It was 2007 when he walked nervously onto the Britain’s Got Talent stage and sang Nessun Dorma. He went on to win the competition.
His debut album, One Chance, topped the charts in 13 countries, according to Neath Port Talbot Council, and his story became the film One Chance, starring James Corden.
His Nessun Dorma recording turned up again in Netflix’s Squid Game 2, introducing him to a new generation of viewers.
The council puts his career at more than 2,000 performances in 45 countries. The homecoming concert will mix the music that defined it with stories from the road, it says.
Potts said: “To come back 20 years later and start the celebrations here, at the reopening of Yr Aelwyd, is incredibly special. I honestly can’t think of a better way to mark the anniversary.”
Yr Aelwyd reopening: Port Talbot’s theatre is now due in 2027
The theatre closed as the Princess Royal in August 2025 for a rebuild the council now puts at £18m.
When the Yr Aelwyd lettering went up in August, the council said the doors would open this autumn. Its own page for the venue now says the theatre is set to reopen in 2027.
Inside, the auditorium has a new timber ceiling and accessible seating on the top tier and front rows, with an extended foyer and a new lift for wheelchair users.
Cllr Cen Phillips, the council’s cabinet member for nature, tourism and wellbeing, said the reopening “marks an exciting new chapter for Port Talbot’s cultural life”.
He said: “Paul’s remarkable journey from Port Talbot to stages across the world is an inspiration, and we are delighted to welcome him home for this special anniversary concert.”
Paul Potts tickets: how to book for Yr Aelwyd
Tickets can be booked at porttalbottheatre.com/ticketbooth, the council says, or through the box office on 01639 763214.
The phone line is open on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, from 9.30am to 12.30pm and 1.30pm to 4.15pm.
Discover more from Swansea Bay News
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
