Ken Ludwig's Baskerville

 

Review by Paul Towers, 8/6/26

Ken Ludwig’s Baskerville

Directed by Ruth Cheetham

Produced by Leicester Drama Society

At The Little Theatre til Saturday 13 June 2026

In 1901-2 renowned author Artur Conan Doyle wrote his third Sherlock Holmes novel, The Hound of The Baskervilles. It proved such a success that it revived the Holmes character who  Conan Doyle had tentatively killed off in The Final Problem.

Set amid the spooky moors of Devon in a stately home and involving a large malevolent black dog, trying to present the story on stage in a serious manner is logistically impossible. So in 2015 American playwright Ken Ludwig created Baskerville, A Sherlock Holmes Mystery. Seemingly having taken inspiration from the stage version of Patrick Barlow’s The 39 Steps, Ludwig has written a loving homage to the Sherlock Holmes thrillers heavily laced with humour and jeopardy but with a small cast of just five (plus the Hound ably manipulated by Martin Bell & Thom Jones)

Leading the production is David Lovell as the titular Sherlock Holmes ably assisted by Charles Moss’ Dr Watson. While these two are the backbone of the story it is the incredible talents of Emma Bamford, Robin McFarland and Liz Kavanagh who bring to life the THRTY ONE other characters. With skilful choreography, minimal costumes and a wide range of accents this trio make you believe there are dozens of cast members.

The story, as is to be expected with a Sherlock Holmes tale, is far from as straightforward as it seems at first sight. A discarded walking stick serves to introduce Dr James Mortimer to 221b Baker Street and the unveiling of a supernatural mystery involving a canine beast roaming the Dartmoor Moors. Sir Henry Baskerville, an American, has arrived in the UK to claim his inheritance but is nervous of the curse of the dog which has supposedly killed off Baskerville ancestors going back 300 years. To add to the tension on the moor a prisoner has escaped from the local prison.

As Holmes investigates he gradually discards various suspects until he has found the guilty party.

While Homes and Watson play it fairly straight it is the side characters who provide so many of the laughs, and the scenery also plays its part in raising giggles.

Ken Ludwig’s Baskerville, A Sherlock Holmes Mystery runs at The Little Theatre until Saturday 13 June 2026.

Pics: Jonathan Pryke

https://thelittletheatre.co.uk/

https://ptheatre.blogspot.com/ 

An Ideal Husband

 

Review by Paul Towers, 3/6/26

An Ideal Husband by Oscar Wilde

Directed by Nicholai La Barrie

Produced by Lyric Hammersmith & Bristol Old Vic

At Lyric until 6^th June 2026

An Oscar Wilde play is guaranteed to be wickedly funny and deliciously bitchy. An Ideal Husband is all of these things BUT this production suffers from several self indulgent interventions by the director Nicholai La Barrie.

Set in so-called modern London it features a mainly black cast except for the two main leads Mrs Cheveley (Aurora Perrineau) and Viscount Goring (Jamael Westman). I have no issue with colour blind casting but several things jarred about this production. Most of the costumes were of Afo-Caribbean style (by Rajha Shakiry) and two of the characters spoke with pronounced Jamaican accents. On top of that was the excruciating soundtrack used in several places. It was completely over-the-top, loud and irrelevant. There were also the various modern references added to the script.

Wilde’s text has a rhythm all of its own and messing with the content ruins it. You wouldn’t start adding in bits to a Shakespeare and this amounts to the same thing.

That said, there are a few outstanding performances that negate the disappointments. Jamael Westman’s very camp and effete Viscount Goring is a joy, verging on drag-queenery, and probably written as Wilde dreamt of being. Emmanuel Akwafo, Mason in the first half and Phipps in the second is superbly indolent as manservant Mason and hilariously camp in the second half as Goring’s confidant. The third stand out character is Tiwa Lade’s Mabel, Goring’s protentional wife, an hilariously outrageous loud slut about town.

While there were a few jarring elements to this production, by and large you can’t completely screw up an Oscar Wilde play that has been popular for 130 years so long as you are loyal to the script.

https://ptheatre.blogspot.com/ 

Liberace and Liza tribute show

 

Review by Paul Towers 2/5/26

Liberace and Liza written and performed by David Saffert & Jillian Snow

For one day only at Hope Mill Theatre, Manchester

 

Quite the campest show I have seen, and I saw The Cher Show!

David Saffert’s Liberace has the perfect fake sincere voice alongside virtuoso piano playing. While Jillian Snow’s Liza is a very accurate bundle of nervous tics and amazing vocals.

Together they bring us an imagined meeting of two gay icons as they riff with inside jokes and tales from their pasts.

Interspersed with the familiar standards the audience expects they bring their repertoire right up to date with modern classics.

 

Peggs Comedy Club

 

Review by Paul Towers, 26/4/26

Peggs Comedy Club

Produced by Laffalot Promotions

After an unavoidable 10 month hiatus Peggs Comedy Club night is back and will be a quarterly event.

A balmy Sunday night in Swadlincote and I was ripe for an evening of laughs, and Jordan and the Laffalot crew gave us just that.

Peggs Bar is tucked away in a hidden corner of Swadlincote but is well worth the search. Not only does it stage various events but has a reputation for awesome street food.

A packed house waited expectantly for our evening of mirth. First up was MC for the event Andy Gleeks, a Northern Irish breath of fresh air who worked the crowd expertly before introducing us to our first comic turn, Ashley Frieze, a larger than life character with a talent for hilarious original songs. My stand out favourite was his version of George and Zippy from Rainbow singing Britney Spears’ Baby Hit Me One More Time. A great start to the proceedings.

After a beer break Andy introduced us to Mark Row. By day Mark is a drama teacher, by night he is a stand up comedian whose speciality is, understandably, kids, his own and his pupils. My favourite gag of his was when he talked about how his daughter spent her nose in her phone all the time, “like a pound shop Steven Hawkins!”. I almost wet myself so I was glad we got another ‘comfort break’.

The final act of the evening was Pat Monahan. I remember him from a TV show called Show Me The Funny back in 2011. Tonight he gave us an astonishing stream of consciousness riffing off the audience. It seemed there was nothing he could glean from the assembled patrons that he couldn’t get a laugh from. Often he came back to the same people wringing even more laughs from them.

By the time I stumbled out into the cooling Sunda evening my stomach hurt from laughing so much.

Check out the links below for further comedy nights from Laffalot

Peggs Bar

Laffalot Promotions

https://ptheatre.blogspot.com/ 

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels the musical

 

Review by Paul Towers, 21/4/26

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels – The Musical. Music & lyrics by David Yazbek, book by Jeffrey Lane

Directed by Steve Elliott

Produced by Leicester Operatic Players

At The Little Theatre til Saturday 25 April 2026

On the sun-soaked French Riviera two very different con men end up on the same patch conning idle rich women out of their cash and valuables. They have very different approaches and can’t decide who gets to work the coast alone.

Suave and sophisticated Lawrence (Chris Hiam) favours the long game, playing the ladies with charm and wit. Freddie (Freddy Benson) is loud, scruffy and opportunist, content with a few dollars here and a few dollars there. In order to decide who gets to work the lucrative coast they come up with a bet. Whoever can con $50,000 out of American Soap Queen Christine (Lizzie Bywater-Florence) wins. Lawrence’s right-hand man Andre (Allan Smith) gets distracted by man-hungry socialite Muriel (Alexandra Elliott) and so takes his eye off the ball. Along the way there are some hilarious side characters including chavvy Jolene (Rachel Wheeler).

Lawrence and Freddie keep coming up with very more audacious ways to relieve the vacuous women of their riches as they work their way towards their ultimate target.

Special mention must go to Freddy Benson’s extraordinary physical comedy skills. His body at times seems to be made of rubber.

The set by Steve Elliott resembles an Art Deco promenade and the full orchestra of 20 led by Gareth Wynne give the production a full depth from beneath the stage.

Choreographer Demi Leigh Essex ensures that the principles and ensemble make full use of the stage.

This musical caper will brighten up even the gloomiest of days with songs, dances and huge dollops of comedy. Well worth a trip to the Riviera until Saturday 25^th April

Pics: Poyner & Mee Photography

https://thelittletheatre.co.uk/

https://ptheatre.blogspot.com/ 

Midsomer Murders

 

Review by Paul Towers, 14/4/26

Midsomer Murders by Guy Unsworth, original novel by Caroline Graham

Directed by Guy Unsworth

Produced by Nicholson Green Productions & Colin Ingram Ltd

At Curve til Saturday 18^th April 2026

In Midsomer there is always a murder. Or two or three or …

Midsomer Murders, The Killings at Badgers Drift is the stage version of the very first TV episode from way back in 1997. Quite why we have had to wait so long for this touring version, I don’t know. But it was well worth the anticipation.

So, to the plot. There are no spoilers here. When beloved spinster of the parish Emily Simpson is found dead in the picturesque village of Badgers Drift her best friend Lucy Bellringer (Julie Legrand) is convinced her demise was no accident and urges DCI Barnaby to investigate. To much laughter from the audience, Barnaby says he has been in Midsomer for 30 years and this is his first potential murder.

DCI Tom Barnaby (Daniel Casey), along with his naïve Detective Sergeant Gavin Troy (James Bradwell), starts rooting around in the world of hidden passions, long buried secrets and deadly rivalries that inhabit the seemingly perfect village of Badgers Drift.

Without giving anything away I can almost guarantee the ending will be completely left-field. And all the more satisfying for it. As well as being a conventional murder mystery Midsomer Murders is intentionally hilarious, much more so than the TV original.

The main actors are supported by an ingeniously cast ensemble playing with no regard for gender, and have a whale of a time. The script by Guy Unsworth more or less follows the original plot lines but he has inserted loads of knowing nods to the original. You don’t have to have seen any of the TV series to appreciate the humour. But if you are an aficionado then the enjoyment of all the in-jokes makes it even better.

For the avid viewer it is of especial satisfaction to know that Daniel Casey, now playing DCI Barnaby, was the original DS Troy. Which just goes to show that if you put the time in promotion will follow. LOL

Midsomer Murders is at Curve until Saturday 18^th April and then continues to tour.

https://midsomeronstage.com

www.curveonline.co.uk

https://ptheatre.blogspot.com/ 

Sailor Beware!

 

Review by Paul Towers, 13/4/26

Sailor Beware! By Falkland Cary & Philip King

Directed by Russell Hughes

Produced by Leicester Drama Society

At The Little Theatre til Saturday 18^th April 2026

Sailor Beware! Was written in 1954 and first performed in Worthing. It starred Peggy Mount in her first stand out role. She stayed with the play when it transferred to London’s West End and the role of Emma Hornett became the template for her battle axe stage persona.

The Hornett household is dominated by Emma (Rachel Draper), the tyrannical wife of stoical Henry (Freddie Dobrijevic), sister-in-law of Edie (Michelle Louise Scott), and mother of Shirley (Maddox McNicholl). Able Seaman Albert Tufnell (Thomas Bates) is in love with Shirley, but he views the prospect of marrying into her family with concern. He is an orphan and has never known home life. Albert has arrived for the wedding with his best mate from the Navy, Carnoustie Bligh (Joey Perez-Jones).

It doesn’t take long for Albert to realise it is time Mrs Hornett was shocked into recognising how badly she behaves to other people. So he jilts Shirley on their wedding morning which sets off a chain of events that lead family, neighbours Mrs Lack (Alison Kisby), Daphne Pink (Natalie Tebbutt) and even the vicar (Andrew Webster) to tell Emma what they think of her, good and bad. She is duly chastened and all ends happily.

On a set designed by Anna Field, the preparations for the wedding are in full swing. Emma Hornett, the dominating matriarch of the family, is micro-managing every thing and everybody. Into this chaos comes the groom-to-be, Albert, and Carnoustie, fresh from the sea. Edie, Henry’s sister and Emma’s live-in maid, is still having flashbacks to her jilting at the alter and regularly has a case of the wailing vapours. Mrs Lack takes great joy in catastrophising every little thing, which only winds Emma up even more. There is much slamming of doors as Henry wisely disappears from the uproar to deal with his pregnant ferret.

Sailor Beware! was a very successful West End play in the 50’s running for more than 1200 performances. Since then it has been a staple of amateur theatre companies nationwide and was revived in 1991 with, unsurprisingly, cast members of Last Of The Summer Wine. With lashings of humour and heart Sailor Beware! runs at The Little until Saturday 18^th April.

Pics: Jonathan Pryke

https://thelittletheatre.co.uk/

https://ptheatre.blogspot.com/