★★★★

“playful, imaginative and full of heart”

Tall Stories returns with another charming adaptation of Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler’s much-loved picture book, The Gruffalo’s Child. Directed by company co-founder Olivia Jacobs, this production remains faithful to the rhythmic storytelling of the original text while adding Tall Stories’ signature playfulness and audience engagement.

From the start, the show leads us straight into the “deep dark wood,” following the Gruffalo’s Child as she wanders in search of the legendary Big Bad Mouse. Isla Shaw’s rotating set—cleverly revealing and concealing the Gruffalo—offers one of the most effective visual surprises, echoing the book’s iconic illustrations.

The cast of three brings great energy to the stage. Hannah Miller gives the Gruffalo’s Child a sweet, curious presence that young audiences love. Joe Lindley takes on the Gruffalo and all the woodland predators, shifting between Snake, Owl and Fox with strong physicality and comic timing. Sabrina Simohamed shines as both the Narrator and the Mouse, transforming from one to the other with remarkable clarity using only subtle costume changes. Her switch into the tiny Mouse is one of the standout moments of the show.

Tall Stories has always understood how to involve children, and this production breaks the fourth wall with confidence. The Snake welcome the audience as party guests, the Owl swoops across the stage flapping large wings, and Mr Fox leads a lively dance (Morag Cross) that has the whole auditorium smiling. These moments give young theatregoers a sense of real participation rather than simply watching from their seats.

Some elements could be strengthened; the Snake costume leaves little room for imagination and caused a few children to whisper “Who’s that?” during the scene. And while the appearance of the “Big Bad Mouse” shadow is a key moment from the book, the staging here feels brief and slightly underpowered, leaving the audience wanting a bit more build-up.

Musically, Jon Fiber and Andy Shaw’s songs keep the story moving with gentle humour and catchy rhythms. The final visual image—Gruffalo holding his child—is a touching and satisfying end, followed by a cheerful closing song that sends families out with warm smiles.

The venue’s scale occasionally works against the show’s potential for immersion—a more intimate space might have drawn the audience deeper into the magic. But the storytelling remains engaging throughout. The Gruffalo’s Child continues Tall Stories’ reputation for delivering high-quality children’s theatre: playful, imaginative and full of heart.

Overall, The Gruffalo’s Child succeeds as a clear, rhyming tale brought to life with care and consistency. It may not reinvent the form, but it honours its source with heart—and for young viewers witnessing theatre for the first time, that can be a wonderful gift.

THE COMEDY ABOUT SPIES

Noël Coward Theatre

★★★★

“another all-conquering crowd-pleasing triumph”

There’s a reliable joy to a Mischief Company production – a blend of manic precision, cheerful chaos, and the comforting sense that, whatever happens – or doesn’t – you’re in safe hands.

The writing team of Henry Lewis and Henry Shields has formulated a winning blend of mayhem and mirth that has occupied vast swathes of theatre land, with audiences mobbing the box office for a slice of guaranteed hilarity.

With The Comedy About Spies, Mischief once again delivers what it does best: tightly choreographed anarchy, misunderstandings, impeccable farce and groaning puns, this time with a generous helping of 1960s glamour and Bond pastiche.

Under Matt DiCarlo’s direction, confusion begins from the off with agents given letters as names, “Not U – you” “Oh,” says U. “Yes?” says O. Etc.

This code-naming is done “for ease”.

Four Es appear.

Of course they do.

And that’s in the first five minutes.

Where earlier hits mined mishap from amateur dramatics (The Play That Goes Wrong) and pantomime mayhem (Peter Pan Goes Wrong), Spies takes aim at glamorous Cold War espionage thrillers – Bond, Le Carré, and every trench coat cliché in between. The result is another all-conquering crowd-pleasing triumph at a quick-fire pace with an ensemble cast as well drilled as a North Sea oil field.

It’s London 1961. A rogue British agent has stolen plans for a top-secret weapon, setting CIA and KGB agents on a collision course in the faded grandeur of London’s Piccadilly Hotel. Throw in an aspiring actor who thinks he’s auditioning for Bond, a pair of lovers in a relationship crisis, and more double-crosses than a spoiled ballot, and you’ve got a narrative that delights in the possibilities of confusion.

What sets Mischief apart is not just the slapstick but the ensemble’s uncanny ability to make bedlam look effortless. Every tumble, double take and mistaken identity is underpinned by clinical comic timing. For example, a two-up, two-down doll’s house cross section of hotel rooms is a blizzard of multi-dimensional farce which reaches a point of near-hysteria.

The production zips along, bolstered by David Farley’s gorgeous set designs that nod to ’60s spy kitsch – Soho neon, art deco lobbies and moving stage conveyors that give chases the feel of a Pink Panther title sequence.

The Comedy About Spies shows a company still hungry to explore the possibilities of their niche. The pleasure lies not in whether the mission succeeds but in watching it unravel with unashamed silliness.

“Vodka Martini?”
“Yes.”
“Shaken?”
“Yes, but I’ll be fine.”

Groan.

“Have you seen Rosemary?”
“The woman or the herb?”

It just never stops.

The Comedy About Spies delivers laughs. That is what it is designed to do and exactly what it does. It’s as a simple – and as devilishly complicated – as that.

Tag Archives: Jon Fiber

THE GRUFFALO’S CHILD

★★★★

UK Tour

THE GRUFFALO’S CHILD

Lyric Theatre

★★★★

“playful, imaginative and full of heart”

THE GRUFFALO’S CHILD

Lyric Theatre then UK Tour continues

Reviewed on 29th November 2025

by Portia Yuran Li

Photography by Charles Flint (from previous production)

Previously reviewed at this venue:

HADESTOWN | ★★★★★ | February 2024

GET UP STAND UP! | ★★★★ | August 2022

THE GRUFFALO’S CHILD

THE GRUFFALO’S CHILD

THE GRUFFALO’S CHILD

THE COMEDY ABOUT SPIES

★★★★

Noël Coward Theatre

THE COMEDY ABOUT SPIES

Noël Coward Theatre

★★★★

“another all-conquering crowd-pleasing triumph”