Great Britain / our review

Dark POWERFUL clever

Oct 9th, 2015

Natalie Vincent

Natalie Vincent

Lewd, crude and deliciously - often uncomfortably - dark

In previews until 25 September 2015

Following the rising star of super ambitious news editor Paige Britain, we see her get into bed (literally) with the power players, the police and collude with private investigators in hacking phones, as she makes a bid to join the ruling elite. Dubious payoffs, shady deals in upscale restaurants, and clandestine sexual encounters all pepper the action, but never derail from the main story - if anything, these drive the narrative.

Lucy Punch adds to her "bitchy" acting credentials - her news editor Paige Britain is thoroughly unlikeable, ballsy and outrageously flirtatious when it suits her dreams of editorship. I was left baying for her downfall - I won?t give away how it ends for her.

There are plenty of thinly veiled swipes at real-life figures who were found to have played pivotal roles in the hacking scandal. Free Press owner Paschal O'Leary, (played by Dermot Crowley) bears a rather striking resemblence to a certain newspaper proprietor, and a screen projection sees him struggle in front of a Commons select committee. His paramour Virginia, plays an airheaded executive who blithley turns a blind eye to the newspaper's actions under her leadership, and inevitably falls to pieces when it is exposed.

Light humour comes in the form of clueless Police Superintendent played by Aaron Neil who is the epitome of the recent phrase swivel-eyed loon. He is completely in the thrall of Britain and the Free Press, and is looked upon with despair and loathing by his deputy (Ben Mansfield) and PR manager , a top moment is seeing him Tazered on live television in the interests of good public relations.

Robert Glenister owns the stage as Wilson Tikkel, the coarse, ebulient and foul-mouthed editor of the Free Press, the newspaper at the heart of the phone hacking scandals and power play over Government. After he is shunted into a less controversial role as the head of the paper's sister tv company - subscription porn - he becomes a figure of self parody.

The true hero of the play comes in the form of solicitor Wendy Kinkell (played by Australian actress Kiruna Stamell), a disabled lawyer for a playboy cricket player who is caught playing away. In her final scene at the Ivy restuarant, plays hardball with the main players of the Free Press and gives them short shrift when dealing with rude comments about her dwarfism. Her final demands for a huge payout for her client are delivered with the air of holding a very large bombshell over their heads.

Another scene-stealer sees an undercover reporter Marcus Hussein (Scott Karim) who comes in periodically with an array of increasingly offensive disguises such as an Arab (Fake?) sheik and then an extremist preacher bearing a striking resemblance to Abu Hamza, complete with hook. The show does lack subtlety in places, which makes you look around for lawyers furiously scribbing notes in the audience; despite a disclaimer at the beginning about coincidental portrayals of people who may and may not be fictional, it's pretty easy to draw parallels. It does suffer from too many targets to aim for, however the short scenes filled with witty and often offensive jokes come to its rescue.

The second act has a decidedly darker feel to it, and the new editor's campaign for Kieran's Law (a reference to the News of the World's Sarah's Law, spearheaded by one Rebekah Brooks) and two murdered children, whose voicemails are hacked into are reminiscent of murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler are brought to the fore here, and it makes for very uncomfortable listening. Some of the quips are so shady, that the audience are left in shocked silence. At nearly three hours, this jam-packed acerbic satire is no mean feat; you need at least a basic knowledge of the Leveson Inquiry and the phonehacking trial to get a full understanding.

 

Reviewed by Natalie Vincent 09/09/2014

View our show pages for more information about Great Britain, Theatre Royal Haymarket.

Great Britain, Theatre Royal Haymarket, London

Great Britain

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Theatre Royal Haymarket: Closed Jan 10, 2015

Richard Bean and Nicholas Hytner's sleeper hit transfers from the National to the West End. Following the trials and tribulations of an ambitious young news editor, played by Lucy Punch, Great Britain...more info

Book TicketsBook tickets for Great Britain, Theatre Royal Haymarket, London

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