Mollie Gallagher carries Clarice Starling strongly. Clarice must negotiate the tortuous gap between learning the ropes at the FBI and extracting information from convicted serial killer Hannibal Lecter played vivaciously by John Partridge. Lecter acts as an oracle for the darkest corners of the human mind. At the same time, more is revealed about Buffalo Bill’s victims (alias for the character we discover is called Jame Gumb) played by Sam Jackson. As we get closer to seeing the disgusting nature of his crimes, with the moth – transformation made flesh – becoming the final key that leads Clarice into a deadly confrontation with Gumb, she also rescues the final damsel in distress – Catherine Martin who is played carefully on the knife edge of despair and dark humour by Lottie Amor.

For me, the story is very much about size: physical size, appetite, ambition and stature with the added minimising of women’s stature and the obvious danger and insidious nature of that. Gallagher’s Clarice looks vulnerable to those who underestimate her but is intellectually formidable and highly physically trained to defend herself. There are some interesting moments of that tension throughout.

Oddly though, there wasn’t all that much made of Hannibal actually being a cannibal which…hello?! I said I wouldn’t talk about the original but come one, Harris didn’t make that rhyme for nothing.

The production itself is high spec. Taylor’s set makes clever use of different levels while Hannibal’s glass cell can glide into different positions, allowing scenes and characters to overlap without the stage becoming cluttered. It gives the production a cinematic slickness while still feeling theatrical.

I was far more engaged with the second act, when the battle of wills heightens between Clarice, Hannibal and the FBI, parallelled by Jame Gumb and Catherine. Lottie Amor gives Catherine real survival instinct, she is biding her time, managing Gumb during the worst possible moment of her life and trying to persuade him to see her as a person rather than a pelt.

Clarice is doing a similar thing in a different arena – pandering, accommodating and continually proving herself to the men around her, to get where she needs to go. And balancing this by teasing vital information from Lecter. Ironically, Hannibal sometimes seems the easiest of them for her to manage.

The first half was too angry for me, but one quieter moment I felt worked well was when Clarice was dealing with the body of Kimberly Jane Emberg, the murdered young woman with the glittery nail polish who was the seamstress and instrumental to the plot. She listens, looks at and actually sees the young policemen who brought the body in and how he needed to stay with her.

The Silence of the Lambs at The Lowry is slick, grisly and visually impressive. For me it finds real bite after the interval, when the psychological games finally take control.

The Silence of the Lambs is at Lowry, Salford from 7-10 October 2026.

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This new co-production between HOME, Northern Stage, the Citizens Theatre, and in association with Royal & Derngate is the director’s first Shakespeare play, and he draws us into each character with an intimate eye.

The result is an overwhelming feeling of claustrophobia and paranoia that eventually become the undoing of Othello. Setting the action in an isolated military outpost during the 1980s Falklands War adds to the pressure cooker feel of uncertainty and simmering violence. It adds an element of modern day to this 400-year-old drama and with it a brutal realism of ongoing social battles with racism, class and misogyny. We recognise soldiers under stress of battle, the testosterone-fuelled environment, the harsh authority of rank and the need to let off steam in Cassio’s drunken scene as squaddies party to crowd-pleaser Dexys Midnight Runners’ ‘Come on Eileen’. Knowingly, Almeida notes: “Othello is full of war, politics and public life. Yet the real damage happens between people who love one another”.

When we first meet Othello (Dwane Walcott) he is sharp and assured in the face of military and personal conflict. The love between him and Desdemona (Phoebe Smyth) feels genuine and joyous, as well as a source of strength for them both.

Maanuv Thiara’s Iago unravels their bond with terrifying ease, as if playing a game. Thiara plays ‘honest Iago’ as the conman hiding in plain sight. He is no pantomime villain, but a snake oil salesman who draws people in despite their better judgement. He is the psychopath whose carefree smile keeps us fascinated in this psychological thriller. It is an engrossing performance.

Natasha Jenkin’s sparse set of caged metal and barbed wire amplifies the cold darkness of the unfolding events. This is layered, to mixed effect, by Erin Guan’s video projections which see Roderigo (Matthiew Sys) filming and magnifying parts of the action on screens behind and overhead. This works well for Cassio’s fight scene but feels distracting in others. The menacing bass soundscape from Matthew Tuckey, also feels an unnecessy addition, being both distracting and uncomfortable in its vibration if you’re sitting close to the speakers.

The cast is excellent all round. However, there are two confident stage debuts that warrant special mention. Smyth brings spark and wit to Desdemona that makes us feel for her as more than a mere pawn caught up in man’s power struggle. Will Stanton as Cassio is reminiscent of watching a young Andrew Garfield. His is an assured performance delivered with exceptional clarity.

As with all Shakespearian tragedies we know we are being led to a bloody end, and Almedia delivers this with unwavering violence that is rightly shocking.

Othello is at Home Manchester from 30 September to 10 October 2026 before continuing on tour.

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I mention this because those with modern tastes might feel a musical this old is of no relevance. But Cole Porter’s timeless songs have never gone out of fashion. This Barbican Theatre production doesn’t reach the rarefied heights of the 2021 Anything Goes (also by Porter) but then nothing could. High Society still makes for a fabulous night of escapism.

Helen George (from Call the Midwife) leads a 28 strong cast as glamorous socialite Tracy Lord, joined by musical stalwarts Nigel Lindsay (Kiss Me Kate), Julian Ovenden (South Pacific), and Carly Mercedez Dyer (who made a strong impression in Singing in the Rain at the Royal Exchange a few years ago, and is similarly excellent here). You could write the plot on the back of a champagne coaster: as plans for the society wedding of the year slowly descend into chaos, where old and new flames jostle for attention. All the while, a sharp eyed tabloid reporter sneakily hunts for a scandalous expose at this opulent, waterfront mansion.  

High Society has always been a prestige affair. Its origins go back to the 1940 film The Philadelphia Story – which starred Cary Grant, James Stewart and Katherine Hepburn – widely regarded as one of the best of the so called ‘screwball comedies’ (which were characterized by sexual politics, and fast paced dialogue). The original play was by Philip Barry, and this touring adaptation is by the late Arthur Kopit, for whom I will always have a soft spot, mostly because he wrote Oh Dad, Poor Dad, Momma’s Hung You in the Closet and I’m Feeling So Sad (that was eventually turned into a movie, and featured famed screwball actress Rosalind Russell). The 1956 High Society starred Frank Sinatra, Grace Kelly, Bing Crosby and Louis Armstrong.

All of this pop culture trivia might be squishing your head. The point being that these performers cast a long shadow but director Rachel Kavanaugh isn’t easily fazed. Helen George has been in Call the Midwife since 2012, so there’s an element of letting loose in her performance, after years of being constrained by a signature role. She’s a strong singer and dancer, and brings a smart, controlled physicality to the part which put me in mind of a zany flamingo, if one can imagine such a thing. Freddie Fox has the best name in showbiz is rather good as newspaper snoop Mike Connor. Some directors try and conceal non musical performers in shows like this, sticking them at the back of the chorus to hide their left feet but Fox proves a nifty mover (and ‘You’re Sensational’ is one of the highlight numbers). As Dexter, Tracy’s ex, Julian Ovenden is smoother than a Cointreau latte. And as is usually the case with golden age musicals, the supporting players threaten to steal each scene – Nigel Lindsay almost getting away with daylight robbery as flamboyant Uncle Willie.

The flaw in High Society lies in the script. There’s no escaping the fact Tracy’s fiancé George Kittredge is an underwritten role; he exists as a foil, a living breathing reaction rather than a three dimensional person. David Seadon-Young has drawn the short straw here (though his wedding telegram scene is adroitly played). Ultimately, High Society is a love triangle with one side missing, and that translates into zero dramatic tension.

But everyone is here for the songs, and Porter saved his best for High Society: You Do Something To Me, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire. Be A Clown, Well Did You Evah, Just One of Those Things, I’ve Got You Under My Skin – one banger after another. Act Two’s Let’s Misbehave justifies admission alone, a perfect synthesis of music, movement and costume (designer Jon Morrell goes above and beyond for this one). The highest praise a critic can give a show is that they would happily watch it twice. Enough said.

High Society is at Lowry, Salford from 22 September to 3 October 2026 before continuing on tour.

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I fall into that bracket. Jersey Boys is a musical I’ve seen several times and each time it comes around I still can’t wait to see it again. It opens with ‘December, 1963 (Oh What a Night)’ and that’s what millions of people have been leaving the theatre feeling at the end.

This current UK tour is the show’s 20th anniversary production. After two decades does this musical, that has won 57 major awards across the world, including Best New Musical at Broadway’s Tony, London’s Olivier and Australia’s Helpmann Awards, still live up to the hype?

The strength of the story is what sets this musical apart from many others. Writers Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice spent hours with the real men behind the wild stories, merging their recollections to tell the previously unheard true story of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, using the band’s catchy hits as a backdrop to chart their journey from the back streets of New Jersey to Rock and Roll Hall of Fame heroes.

We all love a rags to riches tale, and this one has so much action along the way. There’s gang crime, links to the mob, gambling, prostitution, family breakdown, drugs, tragedy, and at its core a fiercely held belief in New Jersey loyalty. As Nick Massi wryly comments: “Sell 100 million records and see how you handle it”. It’s heavy stuff in parts but that is just one side. This is a show packed with the roller-coaster of life’s emotions and even the smaller roles such as Aidan Carson as an exuberant young Joe Pesci bring a depth of interest and humour to the overall experience.

If you’ve seen it before, the staging is Klara Zieglerova’s original design. It is a simple set made up of a base of multi-layered steel platforms that easily doubles as the fire escape on a Newark tenement and the rigging of a concert stage which comes realistically to life with huge overhead screen projections as the band take to the stage.

It’s a slick show packed with hit after hit, including ‘Sherry’, ‘Walk Like A Man’, ‘Big Girls Don’t Cry’, ‘My Eyes Adored You’, ‘Let’s Hang On (To What We’ve Got)’, ‘Bye Bye Baby’, ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off You’, ‘Working My Way Back to You’, and ‘Rag Doll’.

Of course, even such solid foundations could falter without a strong cast to bring the characters to life. Luke Baker wows the audience as Frankie Valli, growing convincingly from a 16-year-old kid conned into crime to a confident, slick-suited superstar; making us believe in and feel for Valli as a world-famous singer with a soaring falsetto voice as well as a human being with all his vulnerabilities and flaws. His star quality shines and rightly gets a full standing ovation at end.

But this is by no means a one-man show, and much of its strength comes from the rich depth with which all four band members are drawn, each telling the story from their unique perspective. Lewis Kennedy as bass-player Nick Massi brings relatable humanity and humour to a figure who could easily be cast into the shadows as the ‘Ringo’ of the band. Carlo Boumouglbay convincingly adds a glimpse into the dark New Jersey underworld as the wide-boy guitarist Tommy DeVito with Mafia links; while Toby Miles captures both the relative innocence and sensible business-head of young whizz-kid songwriter and keyboardist, Bob Gaudio. When the four take to the stage concert-style, the audience erupts as if seeing the real thing and the atmosphere is electric.

There is so much richness in this show, it’s easy to see why audiences come back over and over again. This UK Tour is as good as it ever was. If you’ve not seen it before, go. If you have seen it before, go back. It has all the drama of Hollywood wrapped in constant stream of nostalgic, uplifting hits. Two decades on it is still the hottest ticket in town.

Jersey Boys is at the Palace Theatre, Manchester from 7-19 September before continuing on tour. Age guidance: 12+, parental guidance advised. Jersey Boys contains genuine New Jersey language which may not be suitable for younger audiences. Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult (18+).

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It’s an apt a metaphor for family dysfunction – for example, how many other children get to hide away in a casket for fun and perform numbers on it as if they were the Jackson 5? Weird surroundings result in weird behaviour.

Adapted from the graphic novel by Alison Bechdel and with superb live musical accompaniment, this is a very shrewd choice of show to stage.

Each family may be unhappy in its way own as Tolstoy says, but the Bechdels are uniquely unhappy. A father who flies into unexplained rages at his wife and children, a mother in denial about her daughter coming out as a lesbian, and a couple unwilling to admit a dark truth in small town Pennsylvania set the stage for a night of high emotion.

If all this sounds wearying, it’s not; the opposite in fact. It is in turns affecting, moving, tragic, funny and wise. To cope with family dynamics, little Alison (Harriet O’Shea) withdraws into television and drawing – her life story growing up is wittily witnessed in captions throughout the show, so that you can almost feel her walking off the pages of a graphic novel.

Her relationship with her father Bruce (brilliantly played by Nigel Harman) is alternately adoring and intensely frustrating. When she goes to college he sends her books, including by Colette. It is only her knowing college girlfriend Joan (Natasha Cottrial) who realises Bruce – himself hiding in plain sight as gay – is trying to tell her something about her sexuality. The adult Alison, played by Alice Audrey O’Hanlon with such winning insouciance that at times she resembles Dougal in Father Ted in her level of innocence about everyday affairs, only belatedly comes to understand her father’s psychological struggles, by which point it is too late.

The musical numbers in the show are sharp and powerful and brim along with zest, scooping up the audience in their enthusiasm. The fine ensemble acting adds to the show’s strong production and while there is a gnawing sense of claustrophobia in the unravelling of events, the dark never quite shades out the light.

Jodie McNee as Alison the graphic novelist is a continuous presence on stage, acting as both chorus and internal monologue for her younger selves, moving around the other actors with wonderment and pity in equal measure. Taking solace from family misfortune in drawing helps Alison process difficult truths in a way everyone will be able relate to.

The Royal Exchange may well have a smash summer hit on its hands.

Fun Home is at The Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester from 3 July to 1 August 2026.

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Shipwrecked and separated from her twin, Viola (a savvy performance from Hannah Ellis Ryan) washes ashore in Ilyria. Disguising herself as the suave Cesario, she enters the service of Count Orsino (Angela Heenan), who pines for the aloof Olivia (Jessica Mannion). But as Viola navigates tangled desires and mistaken identities, love blossoms in unexpected places.   

Hawkins and Crowther are clearly fans of Blackpool. Ilyria might be an island but here it’s one with its share of seaside tat, including vending carts selling oversized sunglasses, and cuddly toys. When Malvolio is imprisoned, it’s not in a dungeon but what appears to be an abandoned theme park. The boozy party atmosphere continues with the choice of music, mostly 90’s dance: Dee-Lite, Venga Boys, SNAP, N-Trance, and Alice Deejay (no Whigfield, sadly). The simple traffic light set up at the rear of the stage adds atmosphere during the musical numbers, expertly performed by Feste (Channique Sterling-Brown, who soap fans may recall as Dee Dee Bailey in Coronation Street). Hannah Bracegirdle’s inventive sound design adds another layer of detail, as does the work of movement director, Lisi Perry. Credit where its due, Act 2 opens with a choreographed, slow motion piece where the cast move through a series of stylized freezes, set to a Kelsey Lu cover of 10cc’s ‘I’m Not In Love.’ Genius.    

After Midsummer Night’s Dream, Twelfth Night is perhaps the bard’s most accessible work. Of course in Shakespeare’s day, all roles were played by men, so an all female cast is no big deal. Why do I even mention this? Those unfamiliar with the story might be confused by the fact some male characters – like Toby Belch – wear dresses. This is a minor quibble, hopefully one which doesn’t detract from the narrative arc. Belch (Beth Vyse) and Aguecheek (Kassie Jay Ellis) are a classic duo, a drunkard and a fop, who appear to care for nothing but their own pleasure. Carrying around her own Vodka optic, Vyse is hilarious, like an entertaining lush, convinced of her genius, and gamely stepping up to perform at a chaotic Wetherspoons’ talent night. These amusing grotesques threaten to hijack the production but are smartly counterbalanced by the calmer energies of Jessica Mannion, and especially Lucie Browne as Sebastian; the latter gives an effortlessly nuanced performance, one that hits every stress of the bard’s famed rhythmic language.

If there’s a flaw in Twelfth Night, it concerns the character of Malvolio, the Count’s steward, and whose only crime is being a pompous dullard. The prank letter sent by Belch, Aguecheek and Maria (Maya Dhokia) seems cruelly disproportionate. But Frankie Gold is so great in the role, we end up rooting for Malvolio rather than the plotters – particularly when she dons a ludicrous line dancing outfit as a love declaration to Olivia. Only a romantic fool would do such a thing, but as Duke Orsino says early on, uttering the play’s most famous line – ‘If music be the food of love, play on.’  Highly recommended.

Twelfth Night is at Hope Mill Theatre from 24 June to 5 July 2026 before touring to Rochdale Heywood Civic on 9 and 1 July and Lawrence Batley Theatre on 14 and 15 July. Age recommendation 14+

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There is a pantomime feel to this riotous new musical comedy, but this is just a nod to the many theatrical genres it both reveres and mocks in equal measure. Indeed, there are so many theatrical references it is hard to keep up – and whatever your tastes there is something in this expert mash-up of a show to keep you entertained. For musical fans, think ‘Schmigadoon!’ but 100 times better.

The bigger question is not why are they staging this show, but what took them so long?

‘Something Rotten’ has already been a runaway hit on Broadway, premiering in 2015 where it received 10 Tony Award nominations, including Best Musical. Yet aside from a concert version in 2023, this new production is the first time it has been staged in the UK.

Conceived by brothers Karey and Wayne Kirkpatrick it tells the story of Nick Bottom (Manford) and his younger brother Nigel (Cassius Hackforth) whose writing partnership is forever in the shadows of the rock star poet of their day, William Shakespeare.

Desperate for a winning idea to keep the debt collectors at bay Nick visits a soothsayer he believes to be Nostradamus to find out what Shakespeare’s next great hit will be so he can steal the idea. Nostradamus, a brilliantly eccentric performance from Cory English, turns out to be the famous astrologer’s nephew who foretells a confused future of musicals and omelette. You can imagine the madcap chaos that follows.

Actress and singer Marisha Wallace who performed in the Broadway production joins the cast as leading lady, Bea, wife of the hapless Nick. It is a powerhouse performance where her American accent becomes just another of the oddities of this version of Elizabethan England.

Hackforth brings a tender vulnerability to Nigel, while Manford is as warm and entertaining as ever.

Richard Fleeshman plays the Bard as a leather clad superstar of his day. Whatever your version of a rock and pop hero might be – Elvis, George Michael or Harry Styles – he channels them with confidence, charisma and a knowing wit. It is a phenomenal performance, putting Fleeshman at the top of his game.

The show runs in Manchester until 19 July. Catch it while you can.

Something Rotten is at the Opera House, Manchester from 16 June -19 July 2026.

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Fasten your seat belts because you’re in for a ride, with no let-up in this roller coaster of a two-hour show.

It opens on a scene reminiscent of ‘Grease’ – a stage full of muscly young men working on cars and girls in swinging circle skirts working the nearby bar. The familiarity of Bizet’s Carmen score, with additional orchestration by Terry Davies, immediately draws us into the life of small-town Harmony. Its vibrancy is matched by the energy of Bourne’s choreography. Everywhere you look there are pairs of dancers, each telling their own story of playful youth, seduction and lust. When in the first five minutes dancers strip off and head for a cold shower Bourne sends the audience a tongue-in-cheek knowing that this show too darn hot for its own good.

As you’ve probably guessed, this isn’t the Carmen opera in a dance form. Rather Bourne has taken the essence of the tale along with the music to create something new, but equally thrilling. Bourne’s new story takes the desire and violence of the original and layers it with the noir fatalism of James M. Cain’s novel ‘The Postman Always Rings Twice’, giving the piece a sticky inevitability.

Here the handsome drifter is Luca, an imposing and mysterious Will Bozier. He crackles with sexual energy attracting both men and women and destroying any chance Harmony had of living up to its name.

His first conquest is the beautiful and feisty Lana (Cordelia Braithwaite), a name that nods to Lana Turner who played Cora in the 1946 film version of Cain’s thriller.

Alan Vincent, who played Luca in the 2000 premiere returns now as garage owner and Lana’s abusive husband, Dino. He is a giant of a man and yet Bozier lifts him as if he weighs no more than a child.

The acting as well as the dancing from this cast is phenomenal as they draw us into their dark and complex world. Leonardo McCorkindale captures this to heartbreaking effect as young Angelo who is also captivated and seduced by this enigmatic stranger.

Betrayal and jealousy fire the story forward to its tragic end. It’s a scorcher of a show made for these hot summer nights.

Matthew Bourne’s The Car Man is at Lowry. Salford from 23-27 June 2026. Age recommendation 12+

Read our interiew with Matthew Bourne.

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In fact, the Foley Sound FX could really be viewed as extra members of the cast, called upon as they are to stand in for a variety of sonic deliveries during the show’s leap from scene to scene. 

The action takes place in a BBC radio in 1959, its cramped interior standing in for a murder mystery set in America’s rural heartland. Commentary of sorts comes from the studio gallery but otherwise Keirl and Babbage are left to follow the madcap plot with the sort of energy that could cut fuel bills instantly for the entire nation. 

Director Caroline Leslie has taken the bold step of seamlessly marrying sound and action so that the aural dimensions of the show are just as important as its visual ones. The move plays off handsomely and makes for memorable comic moments – and more than one audience intervention. 

Keirl has the most onerous task of the show in playing al 13 suspects for the murder of crime novelist Arthur Whitney, which includes his wife, a shrieking harridan channelling the spirit of Katherine Hepburn. Babbage takes the role of local cop Marcus Moscowicz who thinks this is the case which can make his name in the ranks of the police and impress his chief. Other characters include a German psychoanalyst modelling Freud’s persona, members of a boys’ choir, a French ballet dancer who pirouettes effortlessly round the stage, and a masters student whose dissertation is on – you’ve got it – unsolved murder mysteries. 

The musical numbers in the show zip along at a fantastic pace and Babbage and Kierl display amazing virtuosity in handling the piano and switchovers. The pace at which such numbers come along can make it has to keep up, but it’s all part of the fun of the show – it’s probably not meant to make sense, just to be thrillingly funny, which it succeeds in doing in spades. 

The show takes us back to the heydays of radio and studio sound effects and to corny Hollywood detective stories which make Columbo look like Dostoyevsky, and underpins the truism that with a little imagination and a lot of props a whole world can be created for an audience. 

Murder for Two is at Octagon Theatre, Bolton from 5 to 27 June 2026

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Thankfully, my estate was not as harsh and unforgiving as Paradise Heights, the creation of writer, actor, director, Joe O’Byrne. There are currently five episodes of O’Byrne’s series, ‘Tales from Paradise Heights’. One of them, ‘The Bench’, is playing in the studio theatre at Bolton’s Octagon.

On a simple set – a war memorial, a litter bin, and the eponymous bench – O’Byrne and the five other members of his troupe play out a series of scenes (some stand alone, some interlinked) which offer a satisfying range of characters, moods and emotions.

It is night. ‘Little Rabbit’ (Jeni Williams) sits alone on the bench. Underneath her dark raincoat, she wears only stockings and sexy red underwear. She is about to be subjected to a “surprise attack” by Mr Wolf (Peter Slater). Unfortunately, Mr Wolf can’t quite play his part well enough to arouse…well…his part, no matter how willing the spirit might be. Enter the hapless, homeless Eric (Joe O’Byrne). Can he really be Little Rabbit’s secret lover, now confronted by an irate Wolf? Might jealousy (even manufactured jealousy) prove to be the missing ingredient for Wolf and Rabbit?

And so, we’re off on a journey of discovery (or, for loyal followers of ‘Tales from Paradise Heights’, rediscovery) of the characters who populate this deprived locale.

Lennie (Peter Slater) and Archie (Hector Macduff) are two elderly veterans laying a wreath at the war memorial in honour of fallen comrades. They discuss Archie’s world war memorabilia, that he’s planning to sell (no doubt to make ends meet). It’s a low key, sobering tale of how a country can fall short in its duty to those who serve.

Unfortunately, the villainous and menacing Matty (Peter Slater), with assistance from his mouthy toy-boy Jake (Jack Vardy), plans to steal Archie’s treasures and sell them himself.

Meanwhile, the intimidating Matty is underpaying needy shoplifter, Gabrielle (Abbie Richardson) for a designer handbag she’s stolen to order. A talented but untutored artist, Gabrielle needs a champion. Could the doting Eric be hiding shining armour under his shabby overcoat?

Trainee angel, Corny (Hector Macduff) can’t quite let go of the place where he grew up. His mentor, Shirley (Abbie Richardson) seems to promise him a very particular kind of heaven, if only he can refrain from interfering and just be a watcher of the affairs of the living, as he’s meant to be.

Heavenly (though slightly naughty) angels or earthly devils, everybody knows well enough to give the psychotic gangster, Frank Morgan (Joe O’Byrne) a wide berth. Well, almost everybody. Kev (Hector Macduff) might be just out of prison, but seems to be too firmly in the grip of his despicable urges to avoid crossing paths with Frank. He might not live to regret it…

And so it goes; theft and threat, love and laughter. And violence, of course. There’s no lack of that on Paradise Heights.

O’Byrne’s skills in storytelling, dialogue and character offer his ensemble plenty to get their teeth into, and they don’t hold back. The pace is relentless without ever being frenetic. You’re not gripped by this story? Don’t fret. There’ll be another one along in a few minutes.

At two hours plus running time, ‘The Bench’ certainly gives value for money. The moods swing from funny to romantic, to pitiable, to coldhearted and downright terrifying. You will surely have your own favourite scene.

Mine is the first encounter between nervous, chirpy street sweeper, Colin (Peter Slater) and the fragile Janice (still grieving for, and indeed talking to, her late husband, Barry). Colin and Janice flirt via corny/clever jokes about ice cream and brushes. Slater and Williams lap up the dialogue and each plays off the other with relish and skill. Together they create one of the most witty, charming and moving love scenes I have ever seen on stage.

Judging by the closing ovation, I think it’s safe to say a good time was had by all.

The Bench: A Tale from Paradise Heights is at the Octagon Theatre Bolton from 28-30 May 2026

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