[1] Originally planned to première in London's West End in 2015,[2] the year to which the film trilogy's characters traveled in Part II,[3] a change in directors delayed the production.

[5] In the United Kingdom, the popularity of the film Back to the Future had been boosted by its television broadcasts on Christmas or Boxing Day for several years starting in 1988.

[3] Workshops for the musical took place in 2014 in July in London and the following month in Los Angeles, with the intention to open the show in the West End in 2015,[9] in time for the 30th anniversary of the film.

[10] Jamie Lloyd was initially engaged to direct the production[11] but withdrew from the project in September 2014 after the workshops, citing creative differences.

[14] Others who had left the creative team included Soutra Gilmour as scenic designer[15] In Hill Valley, California, October 25, 1985 ("Overture"), Marty McFly visits scientist Dr. Emmett "Doc" Brown's house and finds a pre-recorded message, playing on a large amplifier, asking Marty to meet him in the parking lot of Twin Pines Mall after midnight.

Marty, with a flyer on the clocktower in hand, heads home to find his father George being harassed by his boss, Biff Tannen.

George discourages Marty from chasing big dreams, his brother Dave explains his job at a burger restaurant and his mother, Lorraine McFly, discourages his sister, Linda, from dating and talks about how she first met George and kissed him at a school dance as Marty laments his family's state ("Hello, Is Anybody Home?").

At the Twin Pines Mall parking lot, Marty meets Doc who unveils a time machine made from a DeLorean and explains how he built it ("It Works").

However, due to inadequate protection while loading plutonium into the car's reactor, Doc is afflicted by acute radiation poisoning and is dying.

As he plans to use a wire running from the clocktower to send the lightning to the DeLorean, Doc recalls how some scientists throughout history became famous, while others failed to fulfil their goals ("For the Dreamers").

As George escorts a grateful Lorraine to the dance, singer Marvin Berry and his band, on a smoke break, free Marty from the dumpster.

After bidding farewell to George and Lorraine, Marty leaves the dance to meet Doc who explains that high winds disconnected the upper cables and that he would have to reconnect them despite his fear of heights.

Doc faces his fear and the storm to connect the wires ("For the Dreamers" (reprise)), while Marty drives the DeLorean, inserts the electric hook and accelerates to 88 miles per hour as the lightning strikes and sends him back to October 26, 1985.

The following morning, Marty discovers his father is now a renowned science fiction author with an annual celebration named after him, his family is more professionally and socially successful, and a timid Biff is in George's employ.

The musical began previews on 20 February, with an opening night on 11 March 2020, after the five year delay,[16] at the Manchester Opera House.

Roger Bart and Hugh Coles from the original London cast returned in the roles of Doc Brown and George McFly, respectively, with Casey Likes as Marty McFly; the cast also included Merritt David Janes as Strickland, Liana Hunt as Lorraine, Jelani Remy as Goldie Wilson/Marvin Berry, Nathaniel Hackmann as Biff and Mikaela Secada as Jennifer.

[43] The announcement was accompanied by the release of Olly Dobson's rendition of "Back in Time", which was featured in the first film and its soundtrack, in addition to the original track "Put Your Mind to It".

[46] The Guardian reported that fans of the franchise gave the Manchester tryout positive reviews, with one commenting that it's "a wonderful tribute to the film" and another that "people are going to be talking about this for a long time".

[53] Frank Rizzo of Variety wrote, "with the frequent breaking of the fourth wall and the milking of some meta moments, you wonder what exactly the show’s aiming to be: a self-aware joke for fans or a thrill ride with sincerity".