Having seen the first series of Yes Minister I was eager to catch the new stage play, which puts PM Jim Hacker (Richard McCabe), Sir Humphrey (Simon Williams) and Bernard in a very modern setting, albeit with the same interesting relationships. Written and directed by the shows original writers, the play is a witty, often hilarious look at the state of modern Britain and what it means to be a Prime Minister in the 21st Century.
Set at Chequers, the play follows an increasingly difficult night in Hacker’s premiership, as he is variously blamed for global warming, discovers his chef is an illegal immigrant, and finds the only way to save Europe’s economy is to do a dodgy oil-pipe deal with Kumranistan, whose ambassador has made a delicate request for an underage companion… Farce piles upon farce and McCabe does a superb job of progressively unravelling, audibly and visibly. He is amiably supported by a small cast, with Williams proving a good Sir Humphrey, but he fails to come out from the shadow of Nigel Hawthorne. While Williams is great at the long-winded, verbose politcospeak of Sir Humphrey, I found him a little subdued in places when he should have been providing a bit more ‘oomph’.
A more entertaining night I couldn’t have asked for. It also gave a good work out for my grey cells, as the language and content is in no way dumbed down. It’s a good job I have a grasp of current affairs too, otherwise some of the satire could have gone over my head. I hope that the play is committed to tape so that I can enjoy this again.
No comments:
Post a Comment