★★★★★

“panto not just with bells on but with real balls attached”

A member of the audience makes their way to the stage. As he enters the coffin, he is now in-role as the dead King of the fictional European country – Swedonia. And thus begins a wonderfully camp parody of heteronormative holiday rom-coms and a joyous queer love story. Written by and starring Linus Karp and Joseph Martin, as the romantic leads, this is one hell of a festive joyride.

The unmarried Swedonian Prince (beautifully played by Linus Karp) is in line to the throne and must tie the knot soon or he will forfeit his right to the crown. His many suitors, mostly male – who make cameo appearances on large multimedia screens – are all hilariously unsuitable for a whole host of reasons. Yet there is one particular suitor, Aaron Butcher, a baker living in New York who is still getting over his callous ex-boyfriend. Boo! Encouraged by ever the optimist – friend, fellow baker and puppet – Jenny Puppetson – Aaron is commissioned to bake a cake for the prince’s imminent wedding and travels to Swedonia.

‘The Fit Prince’ is produced by Awkward Productions and King’s Head Productions. The puppetry alone merits a visit to this all-round incredible show. A darker fairy-tale element and note of absurdity is introduced with the entrance of the incredible ‘Gerta McMurder – a disturbing-looking, life-size puppet who runs a local orphanage in Swedonia. She is masterly operated by Joseph Martin who delivers her lines in a pitch-perfect Scottish accent!

And then there are the pop songs! The original music is by Golden Globe nominated writer and producer, Leland. The pop duo BAAB (a parody of ABBA) belt out numbers like ‘The Loser Gets Nothing’ and ‘Movement King’ to the sheer delight of the audience.

‘The Fit Prince’ is big on audience participation. I did somewhat squirm when I initially heard about this. However, it was often the audience members who stole the show as they ad-libbed, improvised and gave a fresh and unrehearsed delivery of the lines that appeared on autocue. The multimedia guest stars who made digital cameo appearances also helped to give a sense of a much larger-scale production. Kate Butch (from RuPaul’s Drag Race UK) as Angel Merkel, Tove Lo as the Prime Minister of Swedonia and Geri Allen as the Queen of England added even more sparkle, chaos and high campery to the twists and turns of the turbo-charged plot.

There is so much to enjoy here – including the delightful and hilarious sexy shenanigans that transpire in the sauna scene between the prince and the baker! The glorious design and costumes (Stella Backman, Wez Maddocks and Zack Pinset) and the choreography (Sam Carlyle) transform the show to another level. This, ladies and gentlemen, is panto not just with bells on but with real balls attached. ‘Fit Prince’ may be unashamedly queer, camp, and highly theatrical yet there is an element of social and political commentary that hits just the right note without ever threatening to overshadow the joy and festive good cheer. As Aaron the baker asks Jenny Puppetson if she thinks a puppet can end fascism, she retorts: ‘This is theatre!’ Point taken – it’s our job to do that in a world increasingly governed by authoritarian regimes!

If there is one panto you should go see this Christmas, it’s this one. Best panto EVER! And I mean that. ‘Fit Prince’ fully deserved the standing ovation last night. I wish all the creatives and your good selves a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

GWYNETH GOES SKIING at the Pleasance Theatre

★★★

“it is hard to parody something that is so absurd in the first place”

One fateful day in 2016, award-winning actress and Goop-founding entrepreneur Gwyneth Paltrow and retired optometrist Terry Sanderson collided on a ski slope at Utah’s Deer Valley Resort. Three years later, Sanderson filed a lawsuit against Paltrow for the sum of $3,000,000 (ultimately reduced tenfold). In early 2023, the trial kicked off with Sanderson claiming broken bones and life-changing injuries whilst Paltrow lamented a loss of “half a day of skiing” and countersued for $1.

The trial immediately became an iconic pop culture moment and featured many notable moments – from starstruck lawyers to questions about what Taylor Swift is really like. It thus seems only natural that camp-obsessed Linus Karp and Joseph Martin – together, Awkward Productions and fresh from the hilarious Princess Di in Diana: The Untold and Untrue Story – would turn the court case into the cabaret-drag musical Gwyneth Goes Skiing.

The absurdity of the whole affair is made clear before the show even starts. Screens to the side of the stage invite us to take part in a ‘Celebrity Lawsuit Name Generator’ and songs about falling or colliding with the occasional ‘ski’ dubbed over their choruses.

Unfortunately, this is one of the few times where the technology of the show was reliable – mic packs failed, screens had no signal, and the cast were forced to improvise when no lines appear for their participating audience members. Shout out to the two Stage Managers – Lauren Lambert-Moore and Ella Kennedy – for handling these problems so well. Their apparent boredom at the proceedings only added to the hilarity and stupidity of it all.

Karp plays a soft-spoken and self-obsessed Paltrow whilst Martin is Sanderson, an exceedingly awkward old man who leads a miserable life in stark context to his lawsuit rival. The pair – as expected – have great chemistry and are clearly having a lot of fun on stage. The rest of our colourful characters are made up of the audience themselves who are selected as they take their seats. The audience as a whole also has a significant role to play at the end of the show as they vote via QR code on whether Paltrow is Gwinnocent or Gwuilty.

“a fun show, and the pop culture references are rife.”

The main issue in this production is its pacing. The show drags – it is far longer than it ever needed to be. There is some expectation in drag circles that the overly camp will also be a bit rubbish featuring poor props and an ill-rehearsed cast. This, however, only works when the performance is also exceptionally funny which Gwyneth Goes Skiing is unfortunately not.

The audience must endure monumental amounts of filler. We meet The Deer of Deer Valley (a painted cardboard structure), Mrs Rabbit and Mr Squirrel (both puppets) on the slopes. The court scene eventually enters a montage sequence of key moments but not before near 30-minutes of inane chatter. The characters speak slowly – Paltrow understandably so – but it takes all the zing out of all the delivery. There are funny moments – joyously, Paltrow’s daughter Apple is played by an apple – but the largest laughs came from the show going wrong and even from the witty retorts of the participating audience.

The songs are originals by Leland – American songwriter of RuPaul’s Drag Race fame – and they are…OK. The best song is incidentally also the only one that is sung live by Martin via an appropriately absurd puppet of Sanderson’s attorney Kristin Vanorman. It is a shame that Karp and Martin opted for a lip-synced musical – especially as the voices do not match the gentle Swedish tones or gruff brutish voice of their respective characters.

The staging is fine. The revolve is used well to simulate skiing and the court scenes of the second half have a nice aesthetic to them. The audience is treated to recreations of Paltrow’s court-side outfits though Karp’s wig should really be the thing on trial here.

Gwyneth Goes Skiing is a fun show, and the pop culture references are rife. However, Karp and Martin don’t quite capture the camp of the original trial and it is hard to parody something that is so absurd in the first place. This is unfortunately not the duo’s strongest show.

THE FIT PRINCE …

King’s Head Theatre

★★★★★

“panto not just with bells on but with real balls attached”

THE FIT PRINCE (WHO GETS SWITCHED ON THE SQUARE IN THE FROSTY CASTLE THE NIGHT BEFORE (INSERT PUBLIC HOLIDAY HERE))

Reviewed on 8th December 2025

by Tim Graves

Photography by Anna Clare

Most recent shows reviewed at this venue:

THE FIT PRINCE

THE FIT PRINCE

THE FIT PRINCE

GWYNETH GOES SKIING at the Pleasance Theatre

★★★

“it is hard to parody something that is so absurd in the first place”

“a fun show, and the pop culture references are rife.”

GWYNETH GOES SKIING at the Pleasance Theatre

Reviewed on 7th February 2024

by Flora Doble

Photography by Jonny Ruff

Previously reviewed at this venue:

GWYNETH GOES SKIING

GWYNETH GOES SKIING

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