Tag Archives: 2018

Writer: Nichola McAuliffe Director: Patrick Sandford Reviewer: Stephen Bates The fascination of screen and stage writers with all things House of Windsor shows no signs of abating, so there is little surprise in finding that a central figure in Nichola McAuliffe’s new play is our present Queen’s grandmother. Much more surprising is the discovery that the key themes of this ...

Writer: Mark Watson Reviewer: Tom Ralphs Originally a work in progress show at the 2017 Fringe, Mark Watson’s main Fringe show this year is a delight from start to finish. The subject matter is empathy and Watson’s desire to understand, and empathise with, everyone he meets. The nervous energy that drives Watson’s delivery works perfectly for the subject matter, and ...

Writer: Vicki McKellar and Guy Masterson Director: Guy Masterson Reviewer: Tom Ralphs On the 5th of August 1962 at 10.35 Marilyn Monroe was found unconscious. Almost six hours later the police were finally called to the scene. Officially Monroe had killed herself, but if that was the case, why did it take so long for the call to be made, ...

Writer and Presenter: Gyles Brandreth Reviewer: Stephen Bates Until recently, when he and two other members of his family shared all the roles in a production of no less than Hamlet in London, few would have associated the name of Gyles Brandreth with the art form of theatre. The former doyen of Countdown’s Dictionary Corner and, for five years, Conservative ...

Writer: Henry Filloux-Bennett Director and choreographer: Jonnie Riordan Reviewer: Stephen Bates Back in the days when Michelin stars were a thing of the future for the UK and Fanny Craddock was teaching the nation to cook, a 12-year-old Nigel Slater was learning his craft by helping his Mum to make jam tarts and mince pies in her Wolverhampton kitchen. Now ...

Writer: David Ireland Director: Gareth Nicholls Reviewer: Stephen Bates Have you heard the one about the Englishman, the Irish woman and the American? Yes, any jokes beginning similarly have long been branded politically incorrect, but all the rules of PC are put through the shredder in David Ireland’s brutal, excoriating and blisteringly funny black comedy. The Englishman is theatre director ...

Writer: Lucy Porter Reviewer: Tom Ralphs If you like your comedy safe, you’ll like Lucy Porter. If you like Lucy Porter, you’ll like Pass It On. It really is as simple as that. Porter has been a regular at the Fringe for longer than almost any other comedian appearing this year and her audience has grown up with her. This ...

Creators: Daphna Attias and Terry O’Donovan Writer: Chris Goode Director: Daphna Attias Reviewer: Stephen Bates Firstly, this show is not found at the Traverse Theatre itself, rather it is at the Jeelie Piece Café, a modern corner coffee bar about ten minutes walk away. The show is site-specific and immersive; lattes and muffins are optional and come at extra cost. ...