MAKE ENGLAND GREAT AGAIN

Upstairs at the Gatehouse

★★★★

“Silas Hawkins as Max Moore is horribly believable”

Keir Starmer doesn’t need a writer to help him explain the scary prospect of a government with The Reform Party in charge. He should just tell his followers (and doubters) to see Francis Beckett’s new play ‘Make England Great Again’ .

By coincidence, (actually, no, of course it wasn’t) on the very night after Starmer delivered his anti-Farage conference speech, MEGA opened at Upstairs at the Gatehouse, the north London pub theatre consistently punching above its weight in entertainment and, as now, political satire. MEGA covers the same territory as our real Prime Minister, but with the power of humour, four excellent caricatures and a series of rapid scenes in which are played out the Trumpian-style outcome of a far right in control.

King Charles III (a brilliant comic performance by Clive Greenwood) is on stage as the play opens, watching the news to find out he has a new prime minister. This is the first of the many breaks with constitutional process to come – we know that he should be the first to know, before any public pronouncements. Immediately after, the man himself, Max Moore, confidently strides in for his first weekly ‘audience’ with the sovereign. What follows is a piece of stage business worthy of Morecambe and Wise as King Charles attempts to correct Moore’s apparent (or deliberate) ignorance of the protocols attending that interview. And we are off, on a fairground ride involving the King, the Prime Minister, a glamorous press secretary/political journalist Samantha (Abi Haberfield), who just happens to have a few ambitions of her own, and the leader of the opposition Pam Jones (Miranda Colmans).

Silas Hawkins as Max Moore is horribly believable, given our recent experience of political leaders. It’s a great turn. Hawkins has worked before with Beckett and director Owain Rose, most notably in UATG’s ‘Vodka with Stalin’, and he was clearly their obvious choice. His populist speeches are rousing and grim in equal measure. The best speech, however, is saved for Colmans as Pam Jones. In this, Beckett delivers his real political message. Suitably, he suspends all laughs and we are treated to a really effective piece of oratory about the importance of embracing diversity, transparency and unity within the political spectrum.

It is entirely appropriate that Rose has kept the set completely simple, comprising just a dark background, three chairs and a coffee table which are discreetly rearranged by the actors, in accordance with the needs of their scene. That and a very subtle soundscape – yielding at some points hollow echoes of Moore’s pronouncement and at others, rabble cheers – are all the dressing we need to complement four very good performances and keep the messaging up front.

We were treated on this opening night to an extended post-performance audience discussion led by Beckett with former Labour Party Leader Neil Kinnock. I’m not a fan usually of these events, but this was very special indeed if only to be reminded of how charismatic a Prime Minister we might once have had, alongside one who is balanced and does actually care about the people. I mention it here, only because even if Keir Starmer can’t actually say ‘go and see this play if you want a snapshot of the damage a far right party could do’, Kinnock actually did.