THE GANG OF THREE

King’s Head Theatre

★★★★

“At the centre of director Kirsty Patrick Ward’s bitchy and erudite psychodrama are three rounded and convincing performances”

The occasional soundtrack behind this formidable political drama tells of a nation undergoing change, from the raucous rock of the early ’70s to the chaotic onslaught of punk and New Wave as the ’80s approach.

But inside Libby Watson’s evocative set – all dusty books, leather sofas, and drinks trolleys – the same argument goes round and round.

Three giants of the Labour movement – Tony Crosland, Roy Jenkins, Denis Healey – all pals from war-time Oxford – cannot fathom how to seize the leadership of their party and the country.

It’s right there for the taking, if only they can agree on who should carry the flame.

With such a prize will come influence for generations. Think: no Margaret Thatcher; the leftist tendency put to the sword; no third party politics.

But these towering figures are also – and perhaps more so – towering egos and none will relinquish their claim.

In the end, the prize is lost.

In writers Robert Khan and Tom Salinksky’s reckoning, the what-ifs fly like shrapnel through the years.

That is not to suggest these three upholstered middle-aged men were on the outside. No, they were close to power, becoming the embodiment of the privileged elite. Roy Jenkins, the father of the permissive ’60s, Denis Healey, arguably the last truly charismatic chancellor, and – brightest of them all – Tony Crosland and his seminal thinking on the future of socialism.

And yet, the prize eluded them and was granted to lesser men, in their eyes. They marvel, at one point, how the hard left stole the party after the 1979 election defeat simply because Tony Benn and Michael Foot did a deal that avoided splitting the vote, a feat the magnificent minds of The Gang of Three simply couldn’t pull off. For years.

As Healey says at one point, “We are all children wearing our fathers’ clothes, hoping no-one will notice.”

They know their fate is to sink together, to cancel each other out, but still they cling to old disputes while the country moves on.

At the centre of director Kirsty Patrick Ward’s bitchy and erudite psychodrama are three rounded and convincing performances, not impressions but capturing the spirit of those mighty figures.

Alan Cox is Crosland, all camp teasing and frivolity; booming Colin Tierney captures the avuncular yet menacing manoeuvrings of Denis Healey; while Hywel Morgan has the hunched-up physicality (and the mispronounced Rs) of the uptight, humourless Roy Jenkins, so desperate to run a party, he eventually founded his own.

In the brisk, knowing script we jump from April 1972, just as Jenkins throws his toys out of the pram and resigns the deputy leadership, to the mournful 1980 post-mortem, Thatcher in power for a generation and Jenkins still plotting to claim the liberal throne.

By then Crosland is dead at 58, his stellar potential left unfulfilled.

There is an unfortunate flashback to 1940, suggesting a homosexual fling between Jenkins and Crosland, but beyond that, the play never puts a foot wrong. The script is dense with argument about the difficult politics of the left but all is handled with a deft and playful touch.

To those who were there, it is an exciting tribute to great men of charisma in an age of titans – and to those too young to remember, it serves as a reminder that nothing – least of all fratricide – is new in politics.

The Gang of Three is an accomplished and satisfying work, with polished performances, a witty script, endless gins and a cascade of awkward truths that are still relevant today.

THE GANG OF THREE

King’s Head Theatre

Reviewed on 6th May 2025

by Giles Broadbent

Photography by Manuel Harlan

Previously reviewed at this venue:

(THIS IS NOT A) HAPPY ROOM | ★★★ | March 2025

FIREBIRD | ★★★★ | January 2025

LOOKING FOR GIANTS | ★★★ | January 2025

LADY MONTAGU UNVEILED | ★★★ | December 2024

HOW TO SURVIVE YOUR MOTHER | ★★★ | October 2024

TWO COME HOME | ★★★★★ | August 2024

THE PINK LIST | ★★★★ | August 2024

ENG-ER-LAND | ★★★ | July 2024

DIVA: LIVE FROM HELL! | ★★★★ | June 2024

BEATS | ★★★ | April 2024

THE GANG OF THREE

★★★

“Crim’s script is compelling”

23.5 Hours markets itself as a ‘drama about the price of staying together when everything falls apart’. Set in a generic town in North America, 23.5 Hours is an investigation into accusations of sexual misconduct and statutory rape, namely between Tom Hodges (David Sturzaker)– a beloved high school teacher – and his 15-year-old female student. But director, Katharine Farmer – with Carey Crim’s script – skips the tantalising details of the scandal, the trial, and Tom’s two-year prison sentence. Instead, we really begin with Leigh (Lisa Dwan) – Tom’s wife – as she navigates life with Tom after his release, having become a social pariah herself, whilst also trying to protect her teenage son, Nicholas (Jem Matthews).

Any show that welcomes audiences in with the music of Nick Cave practically guarantees a philosophical workout, and 23.5 Hours delivers. It’s a deft investigation into trust and love set against the backdrop of unending online vitriol and constant scrutiny.

But the play opens shakily: Leigh and Tom return with best friends and couple, Jayne (an excellent Allyson Ava-Brown) and Bruce (Jonathan Nyati). They’re jovially swigging wine, teasing and silly, having returned from watching Tom’s indulgent two hour and forty eight minute high school production of Romeo and Juliet. Such joviality dichotomises the emotional apocalypse that lies in wait, but it’s a messy joviality, somewhat saccharine, not helped by the mess of American accents, which range from passable to not passable.

Once the drama kicks off however, its non-stop turbulence is endlessly engaging. Crim’s script is compelling, situating itself within the fallout of the Me Too movement, but hyperaware of this. In 23.5 Hours, nobody has moral superiority; everyone is self-righteous and reprehensible, yet never villainous. It delicately straddles the tightrope of judgement: as soon as you think you’ve digested the situation, you’ll be ushered elsewhere. And at some point in the show, you will sympathise with every character. Dealing with material this fraught, that is a real achievement. The show scrutinises the grey bits in-between the ethical absolutes that ordinarily dominate: it is beautifully nuanced, and occasionally very funny.

The stage design (Carla Goodman) complements the piece and Leigh’s psyche excellently. All the action takes place in Leigh’s house, to great effect. This static quality reflects her internal implacability: her denial that she could be in any way shaken in her love for Tom by mistrust, despite growing evidence against him. But as Leigh’s trust and self-belief fragments, so too does her house. Nick Cave also pops up again in the room décor, which I appreciated.

Another shoutout goes to wine, which trails behind almost every character: a skilfully subtle observation of multi-generational addiction and hypocrisy.

The show is perhaps a little too shouty: it would’ve benefitted from fewer screaming matches – which would also have shaved a necessary half hour off. It’s difficult to sustain such high stakes, but the cast are all strong, and Dwan carries its weightiness with aplomb.

One enduring ontological knot, however, is the plausibility of the enduring love between Tom and Leigh. Tom’s character has few redeeming features – despite his obvious intelligence – and it is hard to understand his appeal, or Leigh’s determination to stick by him (certain plot points complicate and elucidate this, but it does remain a concern). Fewer emotional climaxes would’ve made room for threat and tension, allowing the insidious seeds of doubt to fester more.

23.5 Hours is not perfect, but it’s truly a gripping show, which cannot but hook you in. And the cliffhanger will give you plenty to talk about on the tube home.

THE GANG OF THREE

King’s Head Theatre

★★★★

“At the centre of director Kirsty Patrick Ward’s bitchy and erudite psychodrama are three rounded and convincing performances”

THE GANG OF THREE

King’s Head Theatre

Reviewed on 6th May 2025

by Giles Broadbent

Photography by Manuel Harlan

Previously reviewed at this venue:

THE GANG OF THREE

THE GANG OF THREE

THE GANG OF THREE

23.5 HOURS at Park Theatre

★★★

“Crim’s script is compelling”

23.5 HOURS at Park Theatre

Reviewed on 9th September 2024

by Violet Howson

Photography by Charles Flint

Previously reviewed at this venue:

23.5 HOURS

23.5 HOURS