LOVERS ACTUALLY
The Other Palace
★★★
“a fun festive evening in the hands of an assured cast”
If you’ve ever wished that festive romcoms were stuffed with more innuendos, dance breaks, and maybe even a throuple, then Santa must have you on the nice list. Written by Neil Hurst and Jodie Pranger, Lovers Actually is a musical parody based on the 2003 film we all hate ourselves for knowing inside out. Your favourite bits are here (the gift wrap scene is taken to gasp-inducing new heights), and the boring bits are not (thankfully no sign of Colin whinging that British girls don’t like him).
An ominously large gift wrapped in a red bow flanks the stage on entry, but when the lights go up it turns out to be a giant advent calendar of sorts, with set pieces and props unfolding from the many doors. This does a solid job of taking us from Downing Street to Albert Square and everywhere in between in pursuit of happy endings for all our lovers, who you’re bound to be familiar with, even if you can’t remember any of the actual character names from the 2003 film.
Under Alex Jackson’s direction, the cast nimbly skip through the interweaving plotlines, each character in pursuit of a lover, with varying degrees of success and vulgarity. Louie Whitemore’s costumes are put through their paces, with a single blonde wig doing some heavy lifting to define three different characters, based on how jauntily the wig is placed. The actors bring the costume quick change mayhem to the audience for laughs too, along with solid musical performances and well-judged pantomime glances when props refuse to behave and the set disobeys them. It’s hard to pick favourites when we’re not just dealing with the original Love Actually character list, but additional meta versions of the characters based on the actors that played them. Joseph Beach is hilariously and unnervingly intense from the outset as Liam Neeson from Taken dropped into Liam Neeson from Love Actually’s story. And Holly Sumpton’s comic timing is stellar – her Emma Thompson made us cackle sooner than I would have thought possible after the final chords of Joni Mitchell’s Both Sides Now.
Lauren Hopkinson has reworked classic carols and the entirety of ‘Now That’s What I Call Christmas’ into raunchy new numbers, which Martha Pothen brings particular vocal accomplishment to. But some of the arrangements are just a bit long, and it hampers the show’s impressive laugh-per-minute rating. ‘Baby It’s Cold Outside’ is the best of the bunch, with a crooning Bill Nighy (Joseph Beach) and his manager Joe (Ross Clifton) delivering pure joy (and jazz hands) ensuring every line brings a new laugh.
The script eventually becomes a victim of its own successes. There are some truly unexpected punchlines and digressions which are such fun rides that it’s actually disappointing to see the whole thing bookended by twee speeches from our Hugh Grant. The show is at its best when calling out the original script in ways we haven’t seen or heard before, and when the meta layering of characters reaches ridiculous heights.
Don’t go if you’re not ready to hear every single Christmas song ever released given a debaucherous twist. Do go if you’re looking for a fun festive evening in the hands of an assured cast, and you’re keen for something more grown up than a panto. This show is like a box of Celebrations – a few of the gags might not be to your taste, but gorging on the whole thing with a sing along is a merrymaking experience.
LOVERS ACTUALLY
The Other Palace
Reviewed on 26th November 2025
by Jessica Hayes
Photography by Pamela Raith
Previously reviewed at this venue:
SIT OR KNEEL | ★★★★ | October 2025
LOVE QUIRKS | ★★★ | September 2025
50 FIRST DATES: THE MUSICAL | ★★★★★ | September 2025
SAVING MOZART | ★★★★ | August 2025
THE LIGHTNING THIEF | ★★★ | March 2025
HOMO ALONE | ★★★ | December 2024
