Review: 'Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em'

by Daniel Hill

Before seeing this production I was unaware of the original television show and therefore this was the first time I had been introduced to the characters, such as Frank Spencer. I felt that this was a very high class production which had a range of both comical and moving moments which worked very well together. I felt that the script written by Guy Unsworth was paired very well with his own direction and design from Simon Higlett.

The 2 hour performance followed a chaotic evening in the Spencer’s household in which everything that could go wrong seemed to go wrong. The dramatic irony created between the audience and Frank involving his wife’s pregnancy was played very well by the cast. It was a show which had people laughing from beginning to end and lead to beaming smiles from all audience members on their exit.

Joe Pasquale lead the cast in a superb fashion as the chaotic Frank Spencer which portrays his strong acting skills very well. His lengthy and pacy monologues were performed with composure and showed that Pasquale truly does have raw talent. Although he definitely stole the show, he was supported by five other superb actors who helped to keep the production held together. The moments of tension between Pasquale and Sarah Earnshaw as Betty Spencer were fairly moving and powerful to the audience. These moments often lead to moments of stillness and silence within the theatre. I was also particularly impressed with the comic timing of all the actors and the physical reactions which they had when picture frames would slide off of the wall.

The set was a superb display of how to transform a Stage into a house. The use of sliding doors to see into the kitchen added an extra dimension to the piece. The set was fairly majestic on the New Theatre Royal Stage which were matched by the use of technical effects such as the magic record player.

I would urge anyone, whether young or old, new to the characters or not, to go and see this celebration of British comedy. It was a brilliant evening and seen through a variety of many emotions.