When her agent calls with an offer to join a BRAVO Arts Cruise, British musical theatre star Ruthie Henshall has just one condition. “I don’t want to be rolled down the gangway at the end of it,” she laughs.

“The food on these ships is glorious, never ending and for me, very hard to resist. It’s all I can do not to put five kilos on in a week!”

Unlike some of her fellow cruisers, however, Henshall will be burning as many calories as she consumes. Possibly more.

Ruthie Henshall. Photo © David Hooley

Henshall is one of England’s revered leading ladies. Her credits include major roles in shows such as Crazy for You, Cats, Miss Saigon, She Loves Me, Les Misérables and Billy Elliot. Famously, she’s played three main characters in Chicago: Roxie Hart in London and on Broadway, Velma Kelly (on Broadway), and Mama Morton in the 2018 West End revival.

“A BRAVO Cruise is a bit different,” she explains. “It’s not like on some trips, where you are just an entertainer, and people take you or leave you. On BRAVO you know you’re getting on a ship full of people...