Despite the huge popularity of his musicals, or possibly because of it, Andrew Lloyd Webber has been regarded as unfashionable for most of his career. As his seventieth birthday approaches, however, his works are in high demand.

He currently has three shows – Cats, The Phantom of the Opera and School of Rock – on Broadway, and, in London, the last two of that New York trio have just been joined by a revival of Evita, while ALW’s other major piece with Tim Rice, Jesus Christ Superstar deservedly returns to the Open Air Theatre (until 23 September) in the magnificent Timothy Sheader staging that won two Evening Standard Theatre awards last year.