With a cast that reads like a who's who of British comedy and a script by J.B. Priestley what could possibly go wrong?
Well, nothing really. It all ticked along quite nicely. Nobody can do downtrodden and then rebellious like Sam Kelly or fix a Basilisk stare like Maureen Lipman. Lynda Baron is big and bustling, Roy Hudd end-of-the-pier drunk and Susie Blake sweet. But pleasant was the only height it reached.
For a comedy to be considered farcical, doesn't the tempo have to rise? Doesn't at least one of the cast have to panic? One mis-timed entrance or slammed door? Much like the characters the script was trying to lampoon, this was all a bit mannered. The performances too careful and the comedy too gentle. Chuckles rather than laughs.
Still, the set was gorgeous and the staging old fashioned and simple. There was an old school robustness which left you in no doubt that everyone knew what they were doing. And you're not going to get that many opportunities to see a cast like this.
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