Laura Whitmore combines birthday and baby shower at karaoke party

Laura Whitmore packed two milestones into one night out, folding her birthday into a baby shower at BAM Karaoke Box UK in London and giving the whole thing the kind of energy that feels far removed from a stiff, gift-opening affair. On Instagram, she called it a “BIRTH day” celebration, and the event landed as exactly that: a party built around fun, not formality.

Whitmore is expecting her second child with Iain Stirling after announcing the pregnancy on February 18, 2026. She and Stirling already share a daughter, Stevie, who was born in March 2021, so the shower carried a family context as well as a celebratory one. Friends and family gathered for what the party description called an “absolute shenanigans” night, with karaoke, rude games and entertainment from a drag artist.

The venue choice said as much about the moment as the guest list did. BAM Karaoke Box London opened in spring 2024 and describes itself as Europe’s largest premium karaoke venue, with 22 private karaoke rooms, cocktail bars, food and weekly entertainment. It is built for birthdays, nights out and group celebrations, which made it a natural fit for a shower that looked more like a private club booking than a traditional baby event.

That is the real shift Whitmore’s party captures. Baby showers are no longer stuck in the old script of pastel decor, polite games and an hour of present unwrapping. They are increasingly social, personality-driven events that borrow from nightlife, performance and group entertainment. A drag artist, karaoke and deliberately cheeky games can turn a shower into something guests actually remember, but the format also depends on a level of production most people will not have at hand. A star-led celebration can afford a marquee venue, a bigger guest list and a built-in audience on Instagram.

Still, the basic idea is easy to understand: the modern shower is becoming less about obligation and more about the host’s taste. Whitmore’s night worked because it mixed baby-specific markers, like the non-alcoholic drinks and the pregnancy reveal that had already played out publicly online, with the kind of loud, loose atmosphere that fits a birthday better than a nursery tea. For celebrity parties in 2026, that combination is starting to look less like a novelty and more like the new template.