No Sex Please - We're British

Reviews

The intrepid Blackmore Players - one of the best village companies in the area - breathe new life into this old farce, penned back in '71 by Foot and Marriott, not alas credited in the programme.

The critics panned it then, but it did excellent business in the West End, and has been popular with am-drammers ever since.

It's a huge challenge, though, not least because an amateur group will lack the rehearsal time - and the audience previews - when slapstick and repartee can be honed.

And there were some slow moments at Blackmore, with the all-important doors poorly co-ordinated and actors waiting for an interruption.

But Andrew Raymond's production was great fun, boasting some excellent performances and a splendid set, with orange doors, lovely works of art, and an efficient, if bizarrely placed, serving hatch. An excellent period radio for Jupiter, but some other props failed to convince: the super-8, the "1001 Perversions" and the camp snaps, possibly due to a commendable ignorance of the ins and outs of erotica.

Matthew Pearson and Rebecca Smith were the hapless newly-weds who unwittingly get mucky books and blue films sent through the post [very retro], dressed respectively in a staid suit and a shorty negligee.

Visitors to their love-nest over the bank include his snobbish mother [a lovely character performance from Linda Raymond, even if several boroughs removed from Chelsea], his pompous boss [Keith Goody], Superintendent Paul [Ryan Stevens - is it me, or are policemen getting younger all the time ?] and two oddly assorted good-time girls [Lisa Matthews brandishing a rubber cudgel, and Ela Raymond, wielding a feather duster].

But the comedy gongs must go to Old Mr Haskell as the bank inspector with the Union Flag flying beneath his jim-jams, and Young Mr Haskell as the chief cashier - aka the Phantom Pornographer - who struggles to limit the damage the tide of Scandinavian filth might cause to the National Union Bank in this unnamed respectable Thames Valley town. Simon and Sam caught the style, both physical and vocal, to perfection, sliding sleepily down the wall, or losing the use of both feet. Sam, whose truly hilarious performance included not one but two suicidal leaps through the hatch, could happily have understudied Crawford at the Strand.

The cast thoroughly deserved the gales of laughter that greeted the better jokes, and the whoops and cheers on their tardy curtain-call.

Michael Gray

This fast running farce is typical of the genre, with people coming in and out of a number of entrances on stage. There were occasions when I felt the action was a bit far-fetched, but that is the script that the Director has to work with and he made the best of it. The script is outdated for today's audiences and it does, therefore, have some nostalgia for a time when even mentioning sex was considered completely out of the question. It takes a lot of excellent timing to make such plays a success. In this performance the timing was generally OK but it could have been slicker. However, it was the first night so there is room for the cast to settle down.

The cast produced some good performances Matthew Pearson (Peter Hunter) and Rebecca Smith (Frances Hunter) made a good couple, with plenty of opportunities to react to what was happening. Linda Raymond was good as the haughty and snobbish Eleanor Hunter and Keith Goody (Leslie Bromhead) provided an excellent portrayal of the archetypal Senior Manager of the period. Sam Haskell played the pivotal role of Brian Runnicles with great characterisation, however I did feel it was just a little too 'over the top' which unbalanced the action somewhat.

The remaining members of the cast all gave good performances, although the blocking was a bit obvious at times. At one point it was clear to me that someone was going to come rushing through the door as everyone stood well clear! The trick with farce is to make it completely natural and, if someone gets knocked aside in the process that adds to the action.

The comedy was delivered with good timing and produced plenty of laughs from the audience; some, I suspect, not intentional!

The set was excellent, solid and well built (so important when people are slamming doors all the time!) and the costumes were, in the main, perfect for the period.

A good evening's entertainment, thank you Blackmore Players.

Tessa Davies, NODA