Book, Music and Lyrics: David Cumming, Felix Hagan, Natasha Hodgson, and Zoë Roberts (as SpitLip)
Director: Robert Hastie
83 years ago, Britain’s military intelligence hatched an ambitious plan to convince the Germans to move their troops to prevent an invasion of Sardinia, leaving the Axis-controlled Sicily undefended. It seems an unlikely premise on which to base your military strategy, and an even more unlikely premise on which to base one of the country’s favourite musicals.
Operation Mincemeat, currently on its first UK tour alongside performances at the Fortune Theatre where it’s been since 2023, continues to receive strong reviews wherever the cast of five take to the stage – and it’s not difficult to see why.
Operation Mincemeat is truly an ensemble piece, revealing creator quartet SpitLip’s comedy pedigree, with all five actors playing a variety of roles and sharing the stage. It is rare to find a piece of theatre where every performer plays an equal part in the show and rarer still to find one where none of the performer’s try and push themselves into the spotlight at any point. In this Pearson Casting have excelled in putting together the tour cast.
Holly Sumpton opens the show as Ewen Montagu, shining light in naval intelligence who prefers style over substance in his plans. Sumpton, however, doesn’t lack substance as she proves herself to be a master of the physical comedy demanded by this role. Montagu’s role in the original Operation Mincemeat was made known through the publication of his 1953 book ‘The Man Who Never Was’ (the film adaptation of which he starred in three years later), which Sumpton brings to life in the show’s final number A Glitzy Finale. It isn’t the strongest song in the show, but it is an ideal number for Sumpton to showcase her comic excellence as she is suspended in front of a sign reading ‘A Genius Man’, a reference to the show’s opening, as the lights start failing revealing a different phrase.
Developing Operation Mincemeat alongside Montagu was Charles Cholmondeley (although the musical may overstate his part in its development while understating Montagu’s), played by Seán Carey. Carey’s portrayal of Cholmondeley puts Carey’s experience in comedy and farce to good use as he balances nervousness and confidence to create a character who is instantly recognisable to the audience as one with whom they all share traits, crafting a character is who both innately ordinary and acutely interesting. Carey has a natural command of the stage and perfect timing.
Christian Andrews brings fan-favourite Hester Leggatt to life in the town which the original Leggatt was educated at the prestigious Wycombe Abbey school. Andrews delivers an emotional tribute to Leggatt, maintaining a quiet yet undeniable hold over the stage with an intimate knowledge of his craft. Andrews’ rendition of Dear Bill was an highlight of the show; a five minute celebration of the ability of love and its power to drive people. His character is equal parts unpredictable and committed to process.
Jamie-Rose Monk (Johnny Bevan) and Charlotte Hanna-Williams (Jean Leslie) complete the cast. Monk’s Bevan is loud, brash, and immediately commanding. In many ways, Bevan is the least interesting of the five primary characters, but Monk doesn’t let this hold her back as she throws herself into the other roles she plays with conviction and unbelievable versatility. Hanna-Williams excels as the unassuming secretary Leslie, weaving her way into the heart of Operation Mincemeat, proving that women were integral to the success of the war effort following her rousing empowerment anthem All the Ladies. Hanna-Williams’ character is inspiring in the way she develops through the show.
Director Robert Hastie (and resident director David Frias-Robles) have created a show which is built on the best of British comedic traditions and which – when paired with the fast-paced and witty script and lyrics of Cumming, Hagan, Hodgson, and Roberts – create the perfect environment to explore a serious moment in British military history with a musical irreverence which is familiar to British audiences.
It is clear to see why Operation Mincemeat is the best reviewed show in the West End, a fast-paced combination of history, fun, and humour. There are moments which risk getting lost in larger theatres, but none which take away from the overall enjoyment of the show. Just a few years after it opened it is now hard to imagine British theatre without the men (and women) who were born to lead.
Until Saturday 3 October, and on tour.
