Synopsis
Programme
Impressions/Performances
Turning TV sitcoms into stage shows seems to have been somewhat in vogue in recent years with a number of such examples touring the country. Some are built around the familiar characters and situations from their television precursor but otherwise boast a whole new story specially written for the stage, whilst others, like this one, simply re-imagine original episodes from the TV series for the stage. This show brings together four original stories that actually gel together quite well so that it doesn't feel like a show of four seperate parts.
The first story, "Branded," (the first episode of the TV series ever to be tranmitted in colour) sees Captain Mainwaring's initially reluct to accept the resignation of one of his most dependable men, private Godfrey. But when Godfrey reveals the reason behind his resignation, and that he was a conscientious objector in the last war, Mainwaring is disgusted and orders him out of his office. The rest of the men ostracize Godfrey as a coward until the unassuming mans reveals the unsung hero hidden inside, causing Captain Mainwaring in particular to eat humble pie.
The second story, "Keep Young and Beautiful," is easily the funniest of this little collection. To adjust the age imbalance between the two services the government has decided to transfer some older personnel from the Home Guard in exchange for younger men from the ARP, and is sending an inspector to make the selections. To avoid being picked, Mainwarings men, including Mainwaring himself, are all keen to make themselves appear younger with hilarious results, whilst ARP Warden Hodges, equally keen not to be transferred the other way, tries to make himself appear older.
In the third story, "Mums Army," Captain Mainwaring's plan to involve the women of the town in the platoon becomes rather too personal when he forms too close an attachment with Mrs. Gray, a refugee from London who has brought her mother down to Walmington-on-Sea to escape the bombing. After setting tongues wagging throughout the town, it ends "Breif Encounter" fashion at the railway station as the lady catches a train back to London leaving an unusually emotional Mainwaring standing on the platform.
The last story, "Two And A Half Feathers" brings into question the truth of Jones'ies Boer War exploits as a new recruit to the troop accuses him of being a coward. Jones is strangely quiet on the matter, leading the other members of the troop to speculate that the accusations may be true. But, as usual, all is not as it seems, and when the truth is revealed Jones becomes the toast of the unit.
The show is very much a straight take on the original TV series with every member of the cast being matched as closely as possible to his TV counterpart. Given that the series featured a group of older men, many of the TV originals are no longer with us, Arthur Lowe (Captain Mainwaring) for instance died in 1982, but there is plenty of evidence of their performances as most of the 80 episodes originally filmed still survive and are frequently repeated on TV to this day. In that respect, every actor involved here plays his part to the book and is a more than passable imitation of the original. Timothy Kightley is an excellently overblown Captain Mainwaring and David Warwick a convincingly effete Sergeant Wilson. Richard Tate's overly eager Corporal Jones is a hoot from start to finish, as is Kern Falconer's doom-laden Private Fraser. Leslie Grantham is excellent as the loveably roguish black-marketeer, Private Walker, and helps to tie everything together by acting as our occasional narrator.
The set is minimalist, with a few simple props wheeled on and off when required and odd elements of scenery, eg. a sign or a window being lowered from above. The one anomaly, however, was a rowing boat to the rear of left throughout the evening which bore absolutely no relevance to any of the stories. I guess that, together with the few strands of barbed wire, it was meant to be evocative of the beach at Walmington-on-Sea - the area across which the gallant men of Mainwaring's company faced the enemy. If so, it didn't work - it just looked out of place and incongrous in relation to other props trying to represent an indoor scene.
Overall it is great fun for all and a welcome nostalgia fest for those of us old enough to fondly remember the TV series - a classic blend of gentle timeless humour (occasionally verging on the slapstick), punctured pomposity and never-say-die bulldog spirit.
Verdict
A great piece of nostalgia sure to please anyone with fond memories of this much loved British comedy classic.
Don Gillan - www.stagebeauty.net