Sunday, August 16, 2026 - Musical theatre legend Elaine Paige has opened up about a difficult period in her career, revealing that she became addicted to sleeping pills after years of performing on stage.
The 78-year-old star said she would often be too wired to sleep after shows, sometimes remaining awake until around 2 a.m. and eventually relying on tablets to get through the night.
Paige described the pills as “dreadful things” to become dependent on and admitted that she had reached a point where she “lived on sleeping pills” during her theatre years.
Paige said the problem was closely linked to the demands of performing, explaining that she could fall asleep initially but would wake after roughly four hours. She referred to her experience as her “Judy Garland syndrome,” reflecting the exhausting cycle of late-night performances and difficulty switching off.
The revelation gives a candid look at the pressure behind her celebrated West End career, which included major roles in Evita, Cats, Chess and Sunset Boulevard.
The singer has since managed to leave the habit behind. Paige said she stopped taking sleeping pills during the pandemic and is determined not to return to them, even after a bad night’s sleep.
Now focused on her radio work and new album Miscellaneous Paige, she says she reminds herself that she will be fine the following day without medication.
Her admission offers a striking glimpse into a struggle that remained largely hidden behind decades of stage success—and a reminder of how dramatically her life has changed since stepping away from regular theatre performances.
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