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TV Review: The Amazing Mr Blunden

The Amazing Mr Blunden is a nice bit of undemanding, traditional, festive fare with Simon Callow doing what Simon Callow does best

“Time is not a straight line, it’s more like a vast wheel on which we stand at different points, rarely meeting”

I’m not normally one for much convention but I do like a bit of traditional festive family fare in this downtime period between Christmas and New Year but despite the preponderance of content and platforms, there doesn’t seem to be much of it around, not least that is new. So credit to Sky and their new adaptation of The Amazing Mr Blunden for scratching that itch for me.

Based on Antonia Barber’s 1969 book The Ghosts which was also filmed in 1972, Mark Gatiss leads this version as writer and director, and also as star since, you know, he can. And it is a refreshingly different take on the ghost story as it takes place in both 1821 and the modern day, reconfiguring what we know as ghosts as time travellers instead, depending on your perspective. Continue reading “TV Review: The Amazing Mr Blunden”

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Plays update November 2021

Casting updates for the Young Vic’s Best of Enemies, Hampstead Theatre’s Peggy For You, audio drama Ghost Walk and the Royal Court’s A Fight Against…

The Young Vic has revealed the complete cast and creative team for James Graham’s bold new play Best of Enemies, directed by Jeremy Herrin, in a co-production with Headlong.

1968 – a year of protest that divided America. As two men fight to become the next President, all eyes are on the battle between two others: the cunningly conservative William F Buckley Jr., and the iconoclastic liberal Gore Vidal. Beliefs are challenged and slurs slung as these political idols feud nightly in a new television format, debating the moral landscape of a shattered nation. Little do they know they’re about to open up a new frontier in American politics, and transform television news forever…

Charles Edwards plays Gore Vidal and David Harewood plays William F. Buckley Jr. The complete cast also includes Margo Cargill, Emilio Doorgasingh, Clare Foster, Tom Godwin, John Hodgkinson, Justina Kehinde, Syrus Lowe, Kevin McMonagle and Sam Otto. Continue reading “Plays update November 2021”

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Round-up of August theatre news

Hampstead Theatre has announced its remaining Main Stage productions for 2021. Stockard Channing and Rebecca Night will perform in the Pulitzer Prize-winning ‘night, Mother by Marsha Norman.This astonishing play, which had its UK premiere at Hampstead Theatre in 1985, will be directed by the theatre’s Artistic Director, Roxana Silbert.  ‘night, Mother will run from 22 October until 4 December 2021.

Tamsin Greig will perform in Alan Plater’s raucously funny Peggy For You.  Richard Wilson will direct this Olivier-nominated play, which had its world premiere at Hampstead Theatre in 1999.  Peggy For You will run from 10 December until 29 January 2022. Continue reading “Round-up of August theatre news”

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News: NT’s original film Romeo & Juliet to be screened in cinemas

The National Theatre has announced that its critically acclaimed original film Romeo & Juliet will be screened in cinemas for one night only on Tuesday 28 September. The film stars Josh O’Connor (The Crown, God’s Own Country) as Romeo and Jessie Buckley (Chernobyl, Judy) as Juliet, and will be available to screen across the UK and Ireland.

Directed by Simon Godwin (Twelfth Night, Antony and Cleopatra), this new 90-minute version was filmed in 17 days in the NT’s Lyttelton theatre in December while it was closed due the pandemic. It was adapted for screen by Emily Burns. The film premiered on television earlier this year on Sky Arts in the UK on 4 April and PBS in the US on 23 April. This is the first time the film will be available on the big screen. 

Continue reading “News: NT’s original film Romeo & Juliet to be screened in cinemas”

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Review: Romeo and Juliet, National Theatre via Sky Arts

Jessie Buckley is astonishing as the National Theatre’s Romeo and Juliet makes the jump from stage to screen to extraordinary effect

“What satisfaction canst thou have tonight?”

By rights, we should have seen Simon Godwin’s Romeo and Juliet at the National Theatre last summer but the stars realigned for these star-cross’d lovers and now we have the gift of the National’s first ever film. Emily Burns’ sleek adaptation has been reworked for the camera and with DP Tim Sidell reimaginging the possibilities of working onstage, something truly cinematic yet innately theatrical has emerged.

With a supporting company (plucked from my dreams) that included Deborah Findlay, Lucian Msamati, and Tamsin Greig, I was pleasantly surprised that the young leads lived up to their billing with two fine, emotionally wrought performances. Josh O’Connor’s Romeo carries the weight of the world on his shoulders but flickers beautifully into life upon the stolen touch of fingertips with Juliet. And Jessie Buckley as Juliet shimmers with luminosity with the intensity of the feelings that take her over. Continue reading “Review: Romeo and Juliet, National Theatre via Sky Arts”

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A look at the National Theatre’s Romeo & Juliet

The National Theatre’s Romeo & Juliet has the cast I dream about so it’s a bit of a bummer that it’s had to be turned into a filmed version but as solutions go, it’s a pretty good one. And given the look of these images by Rob Youngson, it looks to be living up to expectation.

Catch Romeo & Juliet at 9pm Sunday 4 April on Sky Arts (UK) and 9pm Friday 23 April on PBS (US)

Continue reading “A look at the National Theatre’s Romeo & Juliet”

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News: full casting for National Theatre’s Romeo & Juliet

A first-look image has today been released for the National Theatre’s Romeo & Juliet, a feature film for broadcast on Sky Arts and PBS this April. The image features Romeo, played by Josh O’Connor (The Crown, God’s Own Country) and Juliet, played by Jessie Buckley (Chernobyl, Judy), as they meet by moonlight at Juliet’s balcony. The image was taken during filming at the National Theatre.  

The NT also announces today that Olivier Award winner Adrian Lester (Life, Undercover) will play the Prince in the film. Also joining the cast is Lloyd Hutchinson as Lord Capulet, Colin Tierney as Lord Montague and Ella Dacres as Peta. As previously announced, the cast includes Fisayo Akinade as Mercutio, Deborah Findlay as the Nurse, Tamsin Greig as Lady Capulet, Lucian Msamati as the Friar, Shubham Saraf as Benvolio, David Judge as Tybalt, Alex Mugnaioni as Paris and Ellis Howard as Sampson.  Continue reading “News: full casting for National Theatre’s Romeo & Juliet”

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TV Review: Jonathan Creek, Series 4

Series 4 sees Jonathan Creek lose its way badly as chauvinism slides into misogyny amid Alan Davies and Julia Sawalha’s strange chemistry

“Now it’ll save your time and mine, I think, if I truncate”

I found series 4 of Jonathan Creek surprisingly difficult to watch. Even if the quality had started to taper off over the course of the previous three seasons, something critical had been lost at this point, far over and beyond the departure of original star Caroline Quentin. Her replacement was Julia Sawalha’s Carla, introduced in the 2001 Christmas special and though she shares a screwball-ish energy with Alan Davies’ duffle-coated protagonist, she’s been married off to Ade Edmondson’s svengali Brendan.

It’s an odd choice that unsettles the whole rhythm of the show, as it devotes way too much time to the uneasy relationship between the pair. And as David Renwick’s writing fully immerses itself in its worst male chauvinist excesses – just look at how women are presented in the first episode, from the prizewinner presented as a grotesque to Anna Francolini being done dirty as a ditzy assistant – the idea that the majority of female characters now have to throw themselves at Jonathan’s feet, is delusional nonsense. Continue reading “TV Review: Jonathan Creek, Series 4”

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News: NT announces original film of Romeo & Juliet with Josh O’Connor & Jessie Buckley

The National Theatre converts its planned Romeo & Juliet with Josh O’Connor & Jessie Buckley into a TV adaptation, with an amazing supporting cast that includes Deborah Findlay, Lucian Msamati and Tamsin Greig

The National Theatre has announced it is creating a new filmed version of Romeo & Juliet for television, temporarily transforming the vast stage spaces of its Lyttelton theatre into a film studio to capture Shakespeare’s timeless play for a new generation of audiences.

Romeo & Juliet will be directed by NT Associate Simon Godwin (Antony and Cleopatra, Twelfth Night), adapted for screen by Emily Burns and with Jessie Buckley (Chernobyl, Judy) and Josh O’Connor (God’s Own Country, The Crown) as the star-crossed lovers. Continue reading “News: NT announces original film of Romeo & Juliet with Josh O’Connor & Jessie Buckley”

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News: the Bridge Theatre plots an autumn season of monologues

The Bridge Theatre has announce a repertoire of twelve one-person plays during September and October, using the theatre’s flexible auditorium to provide around 250 socially distanced seats.

An Evening With an Immigrant by Inua Ellams

Award-winning poet and playwright Inua Ellams left Nigeria for England in 1996 aged 12.

An Evening With An Immigrant is a potent and personal account of life as an immigrant told through poetry and music telling Ellam’s ridiculous, fantastic and poignant story – escaping fundamentalist Islam, experiencing prejudice and friendship in Dublin, performing solo at the National Theatre and drinking wine with the Queen of England – all the while without a country to belong to or place to call home. Continue reading “News: the Bridge Theatre plots an autumn season of monologues”