Running is certainly the motif for this cracking comedy, which proceeds at breakneck speed from the word go. Starting from the promising set up of a bigamous taxi driver who is happily leading a double life with one missus in Wimbledon and another in Streatham, Ray Cooney quickly sets up the situation and characters and then lets havoc commence. There is no one who writes this stuff better than Cooney and this is a masterpiece of complex plotting, and double, triple and quadruple entendre.
The cast of eight are all on terrific form, each bringing a panache and frenetic energy to the crazy story of John Smith and his two wives. Unknown to each other, they happily care for this highly-organised cheeky chappie, who they believe does "a lot of overtime", until, that is, he is concussed in a mugging. Unfortunately for him, at the hospital he gives one address and the police station the other, thus setting on his trail two detectives - one from Wimbledon and one from Streatham. John is hard-pressed to keep all his cats in the bag with these coppers start asking questions.
His difficulties are compounded by the fact that his picture is splashed all over the evening newspaper as the have-a-go-hero' of the mugging incident. John has to rely on his daft friend Stanley to help him out of his fix. But is he up to the job? Obviously not! Patrick Lennox gives a storming performance as Stanley, but I would be loathe to pick out anyone as the star of this show, as it is a masterful piece of ensemble theatre brilliantly directed by Ron Aldridge.
What a perfect way to celebrate the Christmas season - a slap-up traditional dinner (complete with crackers and mince pies!), an uproarious farce, and post-performance live music and drinks in a swish bar. Well, all can be had for an extremely reasonable price at the Mill at Sonning (including the programme and parking), but do book early to avoid disappointment as these tickets are surely going to run away very quickly.
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