John Godber Archives - thespyinthestalls.com

This is not Right

Wilton’s Music Hall

Reviewed – 2nd October 2019

★★★★

“pulls you into its world and keeps you there with beautifully observed performances and a gripping story”

This is Not Right is John Godber’s latest play, set in his old stomping ground – Hull. Specifically, a Hull council estate which throughout the play is painted as a very bleak and toxic environment. Perhaps this is why it has been specially rewritten for Wilton’s Music Hall – the minimalist set lends itself to the derelict appearance of the venue, creating the effect of being stuck in the past, a massive part of the play’s identity. The minimalism continues with the lack of recorded sound – instead music is provided by a discordant violin courtesy of Sophie Bevan and changes in setting are shown through the cast’s soundscapes. These feel like appropriate choices for the piece, although with only four actors the soundscapes are somewhat limited and don’t always paint a clear picture.

This is Not Right follows the story of Holly (Martha Godber) through her childhood and early adult life, focusing on the difficulties of growing up in a poor neighbourhood with a doting but very overprotective father (Jamie Smelt), who tries to guard his daughter from danger but only succeeds in pushing her further away. When Holly eventually flies the nest, she breaks contact with Dad in her determination to become independent, but when London life doesn’t work out for her she is forced to “do the thing I said I’d never do” and return home. The overall story is wonderfully engaging with an expertly crafted marriage of beautifully heartfelt moments and witty observational comedy, however the last twenty minutes or so feel like something of a stalemate. Conflict between Holly and Dad continues with the climax being a vaguely political argument about girls going missing, followed by a fight with the noisy neighbours. There are no revelations for either character and the play concludes rather abruptly with Holly leaving to stay at her Gran’s.

Perhaps this is the point John Godber is trying to make – that sometimes things don’t change and life trudges on regardless. Echoing the title, Holly’s last line is “this is not right, is it?” Could that refer to things not changing? Is it a general comment on life in working class Hull? Or girls going missing? For me, it is unclear what ‘is not right’, and the ending feels decidedly washed out, letting down an otherwise spellbinding tale.

John Godber’s direction is triumphant – the acting is superb. Martha Godber performs with a wild energy encapsulating all the hormonal mood swings expected from a teenager; it erupts during scenes with Dad yet is also deftly woven into her narration. Holly’s development in maturity and experience as the play’s timeline advances is also commendably reflected in Godber’s portrayal. Jamie Smelt’s performance is the one that stays with me, however. It is touchingly vulnerable – a poignant, considered portrait of the hapless Dad as he attempts to get through to his daughter. Parents in the audience may find themselves painfully relating – the tragicomedy of his tactlessness and the genuine desperation as he realises Holly is slipping away from him are both etched into the performance. Sophie Bevan and Lamin Touray complete the picture with overall solid supporting characters, although I found Touray’s lack of Belgian accent for Harvey a confusing choice.

Overall, This is Not Right is a play which pulls you into its world and keeps you there with beautifully observed performances and a gripping story. Although you may leave wanting slightly more from its resolution, it is immensely enjoyable – just make sure you leave your ‘HULL AND PROUD’ sweater at home.

Reviewed by Sebastian Porter

Photography © John Godber Company

This is not Right

Wilton’s Music Hall until 5th October

Last ten shows reviewed at this venue:

Twelfth Night | ★★★ | September 2018

Dietrich – Natural Duty | ★★★★ | November 2018

The Box of Delights | ★★★★ | December 2018

Dad’s Army Radio Hour | ★★★★ | January 2019

The Good, The Bad And The Fifty | ★★★★ | February 2019

The Pirates Of Penzance | ★★★★ | February 2019

The Shape Of the Pain | ★★★★★ | March 2019

The Talented Mr Ripley | ★★★★ | May 2019

The Sweet Science Of Bruising | ★★★★ | June 2019

Old Stock: A Refugee Love Story | ★★★★★ | September 2019

Click here to see our most recent reviews

Scary Bikers

Trafalgar Studios

Reviewed – 4th April 2019

★★★★

“a wonderfully poignant and hilariously funny comedy about life after death”

Imagine turning on your PlayStation or opening Candy Crush, and instead of the heady dopamine hit of flashing lights and reward pathways, you get your work email inbox. That is how to it feels to find out that the play you’re going to see is about Brexit. Fortunately, Scary Bikers is as concerned about Brexit as ‘Titanic’ was about 20th-century steel ships; it’s definitely in the play, but it’s not much fun when they talk about it.

John Godber both wrote and directed Scary Bikers, and he plays Don with Jane Thornton as Carol across the stage. Don has lost his wife to lung cancer after a lifetime of working-class lore with miners’ strikes, stolen coal and the inevitable retraining. Carol too has lost her husband, a northern boy done good as an architect, lost to a brain tumour as middle age wanes and old age waxes. They meet, in a graveyard of all places, and come to chatting.

Carol now owns a middle-class cycling cafe in her husband’s memory as she plans a cycle trip to Florence. Don has fared less well with isolation, bitterness and a loss of the little faith he ever had. Somehow, Don is convinced to pay ‘two thousand bludy pounds’ to join this trip to Florence but on a tandem with Carol.

As they take the ferry from Hull to the continent, Britain goes to the polls and Godber the writer goes for the crowbar; squeezing in hindsight-rich observations about Brexit framed as an argument between the two characters. It’s all a little forced as they fall out on politics then resolve.

The pointed heads over at Sky Arts had the idea of Art 50: a pot of money for artists around the UK to produce content on the ineffable question of “What it means to be British”. He who pays the piper, calls the tune, and Godber dutifully dances just enough to satisfy his paymasters at Sky.

But he’s sly, and the play is never really about Brexit. Truthfully, it’s a wonderfully poignant and hilariously funny comedy about life after death; not your death but the death of someone you loved. Where Don and Carol struck the audience was as their lost partners appeared beside them and each talked with loss, pain and comedy pulsating out into the audience. The Brexit conversation doesn’t land in the same way. There’s a valiant attempt to represent both sides of the debate but the ideas feel more like talking points in a contemporary essay, rather than characters expressing themselves in the moment.

Scary Bikers arrives through the headwind of Brexit. Foxton’s detailed set (the cycling cafe) establishes a precise sense of place for some of the scenes and a static tandem on stage gifts the actors with opportunities for wonderful physical comedy. But the real velocity comes from the performances. Godber gets the laughs ever time with his gruff but profound portrayal and Thornton brings a beautiful arc as Carol grows and escapes the fear and anxiety which sat upon her. Ultimately, if a play which keeps mentioning Brexit can make you laugh, it’s a good’un in my books.

Wilton’s Music Hall

Reviewed – 2nd October 2019

★★★★

“pulls you into its world and keeps you there with beautifully observed performances and a gripping story”

Reviewed by Sebastian Porter

Photography © John Godber Company

This is not Right

Wilton’s Music Hall until 5th October

Last ten shows reviewed at this venue:

Trafalgar Studios

Reviewed – 4th April 2019

★★★★

“a wonderfully poignant and hilariously funny comedy about life after death”

As they take the ferry from Hull to the continent, Britain goes to the polls and Godber the writer goes for the crowbar; squeezing in hindsight-rich observations about Brexit framed as an argument between the two characters. It’s all a little forced as they fall out on politics then resolve.

The pointed heads over at Sky Arts had the idea of Art 50: a pot of money for artists around the UK to produce content on the ineffable question of “What it means to be British”. He who pays the piper, calls the tune, and Godber dutifully dances just enough to satisfy his paymasters at Sky.

Reviewed by William Nash

Photography by Antony Robling

Scary Bikers

Trafalgar Studios until 27th April

Last ten shows reviewed at this venue: