OLIVER!

Gielgud Theatre

★★★½

“Lipkin’s Olivier nominated Fagin steals the show with wit, warmth and humanity”

Cameron Mackintosh’s West End revival of Lionel Bart’s Tony and Oscar winning ‘Oliver!’ enters its second year, brimming with crowd pleasing charm. Though the emotional development could be sharper, the stunning score and cast will have you reviewing the situation.

Unlucky orphan Oliver is ousted from the workhouse after unwittingly sparking revolt. Forced to flee to London, he falls in with Fagin’s child gang, the violent Bill Sikes and his abused partner Nancy. Horrified by his new “trade”, Oliver ends up in the dock – until unexpected kindness changes everything.

Dickens’ ‘Oliver Twist’ is a pointed critique of hypocritical Victorian ‘welfare’, which Bart’s classic book smooths out and Mackintosh’s revisions soften further. Fagin’s much more sympathetic take smartly dodges harmful stereotypes, though the chummy fourth wall humour leaves his arc feeling a touch undercooked. Though Dickens’ characters are broad by design, it’s a shame this revival doesn’t dig into the grit and nuance a bit more. Act 2 also loses focus, with back to back songs and a busy climax leaving the ending underpowered. Still, the script strikes a confident balance between humour and darkness.

Bart’s Tony winning score and William David Brohn’s orchestrations get a fresh lift from Stephen Metcalfe, with music supervision by Graham Hurman. This classic score sparkles, from rousing chorus numbers and snappy comedy songs to heart-rending solos. It deftly foreshadows key moments and gives each character a unique musical identity. Though the reprise of ‘As Long As He Needs Me’ feels more echo than progression, overall the orchestrations are spot on – the banjo-led ‘I’d Do Anything’ is particularly charming.

Dance icon Matthew Bourne’s direction, with co director Jean Pierre van der Spuy, delivers striking visuals with beautiful video, slick turntable transitions and a shifting set that creates expansive and claustrophobic moments. The emotional arcs don’t always land, though, feeling a little thin and needing more tension in places. Some beats feel rushed, like Oliver’s reunion with Brownlow, and both act finales could hit harder, especially Act 2 where Fagin’s misfortune gets buried in the bustle. That said, Bourne’s strength as a choreographer really shines through. Each scene is expertly judged, some bursting with energy and others striking for their stillness. The big chorus numbers are sharp and modern, contrasting beautifully with the flowing grace of ‘Who Will Buy?’.

Lez Brotherston’s design is deliciously moody, perfectly capturing Victorian London’s smog-choked streets. Paule Constable and Ben Jacobs’ lighting conjures bleak beauty, occasionally shot through with bursts of warmth or colour. Adam Fisher’s sound, with associate Ollie Durrant, is finely balanced, cleverly summoning Bill Sikes’ dog. George Reeve’s projections set the tone with shockingly blood red titles and ghostly hints of St Paul’s in the haze.

Simon Lipkin’s Olivier nominated Fagin steals the show with wit, warmth and humanity. Ava Brennan’s Nancy is magnetic, mastering outward poise and inner conflict, while Aaron Sidwell’s Bill Sikes brings a chilling, naturalistic menace. Tonight’s Oliver, Isaac Hackett, pairs wide eyed innocence with beautifully pure vocals. Aaron MacGregor’s Artful Dodger deftly combines street smart swagger with just enough vulnerability to remind us he’s still just a kid.

This may not be the boldest or most emotionally charged take, but Mackintosh’s revival of ‘Oliver!’ still delivers plenty of entertainment. Catch this superb cast while you can.

OLIVER!

Gielgud Theatre

Reviewed at Gala Evening on 14th April 2026

by Hannah Bothelton

Photography by Johan Persson

OLIVER!

★★★★

“his genuine humour and irreverent style keep the piece feeling fresh”

James Barr’s I’m Sorry I Hurt Your Son (Said My Ex to My Mum) arrives at Soho Theatre with the confidence of a show that has already lived many lives. Following more than 130 performances since its Edinburgh Fringe debut in 2024, it’s slick, assured, and clearly battle-tested.

He doesn’t quite start there, though. The opening feels rushed, as Barr races through his first vignette without fully letting the audience catch up or settle into the rhythm of his delivery. It’s a slightly nervous beginning, but a short-lived one. Within ten minutes, he visibly relaxes; the pacing evens out, the laughs land more confidently, and by the final third he’s even laughing at himself, leaning into the material with a sense of ease that feels both earned and infectious.

The show sits firmly within the now-familiar “comedy about trauma” mode that has gained traction since Hannah Gadsby’s Nanette. Barr even nods toward this lineage, referencing legal advice he received about naming and shaming the source of his trauma so he doesn’t get Baby Reindeer-ed. But while the structure may feel recognisable, his genuine humour and irreverent style keep the piece feeling fresh rather than slipping into mimicry.

At its core, this is a show about an abusive relationship. Barr recounts his four years with “Alex”, beginning with a rom-com-worthy meet-cute that rises to first love before slowly unraveling.

As a self-described hopeless romantic, he speaks candidly about wanting to “prove” his worth as a gay man within heteronormative frameworks, both to his mother, the emotionally unavailable Colleen, and to himself. When Colleen receives a Christmas card from Alex with the phrase ‘I’m sorry I hurt your son’ in it, her first response to comment on his lovely handwriting. The mother-son dynamic is one of the show’s more subtle motifs, but does wonders for hinting at the wider context in which Barr’s romantic life has unfolded.

If that sounds a bit heavy, there’s no need to fear. There are sharp jokes throughout, with a particular emphasis on gags about the royals, but the humour never feels incidental. Instead, it functions as a kind of emotional choreography: moments of vulnerability are carefully followed by punchlines, ensuring the audience is never left too long in discomfort. As Barr himself puts it, the laughs are never far away.

This balancing act is key to the show’s success. Barr seems intent on recreating, within an hour, the emotional whiplash of an abusive relationship; drawing the audience into moments of tension before offering relief. The result is that, despite the heavy subject matter (including the sobering statistic that 1 in 3 LGBTQ+ people experience abusive relationships), the evening never tips into bleakness. There are even detours into absurdity – German piss parties among them – that keep the tone buoyant and the audience consistently laughing throughout.

Those familiar with Barr from Hits Radio or his podcast A Gay and a Non-Gay might expect high-energy, irreverent banter. What they get instead is something more layered. As he wryly notes, he’s “doing trauma now”, much like Beyonce is doing country! But crucially, he’s doing it with warmth, humour, and in his own personal style.

Tag Archives: Review

OLIVER!

★★★½

Gielgud Theatre

OLIVER!

Gielgud Theatre

★★★½

“Lipkin’s Olivier nominated Fagin steals the show with wit, warmth and humanity”