Writer: John Godber
Director: Jane Thornton
It’s more than a couple of years since this reviewer studied GCSE drama but John Godber’s Teechers, updated for its 2026 tour with new references and a soundtrack featuring the best songs of the past few years, immediately transported me back to ‘the new hall’ where a 15-year-old performed for a stoney-faced examiner guided by teachers who’s impact on me I never really understood until I had left – much like the three characters who brought the story of a year in the life at a normal British school to life with the energy and naivety that has been stereotypical of school theatre.
Godber’s early life as a drama teacher shines through the show, part love letter to the teaching profession and part manifesto against the increasingly challenging environment those teachers are working in.
Just three actors tell this story, each playing one of three students of Whitewall Academy. Those students – in true BTEC style – play a number of roles through the show, from unruly students to frazzled and overworked teachers. Using simple elements of costume, a jacket for drama teacher Miss Nixon and novelty glasses for maths teacher Dr Basford, to indicate changes in character, Jane Thornton’s direction keeps the show moving at pace and allows her actors to shine.
Perhaps the most consistently strong among the actors is Sophie Suddaby as Hobby. Through Hobby’s (and Suddaby’s) portrayal of Miss Nixon we see a change from the idealism-filled teacher who walks into the school on the first day of term, to a teacher facing burn out by the end of their first year in the job. It is a very honest portrayal of the issues that have led to a retention crisis in British schools, delivered with skill and nuance. It is impossible to watch Suddaby’s performance, and that of Jo Patmore as Ms Witham, and not see this show as Godber’s cry for change in our education system as Miss Nixon grapples with the reality of students typing essays on their mobiles because their families can’t afford computers while a nearby school boasts of its professional theatre and heated swimming pool.
The message of despair is delivered succinctly by Levi Payne as Salty, disinterested in an education he feels is preparing him for jobs that simply don’t exist. Payne’s talent and versatility as an actor are at the forefront as he becomes Mrs Parry, the out-of-touch and possibly over-paid executive headteacher and wannabe theatre director who bemoans the challenges facing education all while distracted from the real challenge in her life; how to combine the roles of Tallulah and Fat Sam in this year’s production of Bugsy Malone. Payne is effortlessly funny, finding every moment of humour in the script as he jumps between Salty, Mrs Parry, a teacher at the local private school, and school bully Oggy Moxon (portrayed also by Patmore’s Gail).
Completing the cast is Jo Patmore as Gail. Patmore is breathtakingly versatile as she plays characters ranging from the old, irritable caretaker Doug to the young, energetic PE teacher Miss Jackie Prime. As her characters change so does everything about the way Patmore commands the stage; her voice, her mannerisms, and the way she engages with the other characters and the audience.
Teechers offers its audience a rare insight into the state of our schools in 2026, compels us to see the importance of putting drama at the heart of childhood, and asks us if schools are ready and resourced to prepare children like Gail, Hobby, and Salty for the world that lies ahead of them.
Runs until Saturday 7 March, and then on tour.
