Witness for the Prosecution was originally adapted by Agatha Christie in 1951 for the stage from a short story she had written in 1925 entitled Traitor Hands. Her producer, Peter Saunders, was so keen to see the story adapted that he wrote his own version which she rejected to write her own. Apparently, she was drawn to the challenge of keeping the suspense of a murder mystery going before a live audience in a theatre, rather than in a book which can be read at leisure. The play was a huge success and one can see why; it is enormous fun. This site-specific production, set in the Council Chamber of London County Hall, makes the courtroom scenes a more immersive experience, even using audience members as the jury.
Leonard Vole, a personable and handsome young man, has been accused of murdering Emily French, a middle aged wealthy woman he had recently befriended, making frequent visits to her Hampstead home. When he had heard about the murder, he went to the police station to see how he could help and is instead arrested a few days later as it transpires he is the sole heir of Emily French’s fortune. Leonard has faith in the justice system and in his barrister, Sir Wilfred Robarts, saying “You don’t get convicted for things you haven’t done, not in England.” He also is sure that his devoted wife, Romaine, will provide an alibi as he was with her when the murder supposedly took place.
Janet Mackenzie, the housekeeper to Miss French, paints quite a different picture of the unemployed Vole, as a conniving, gold- digging seducer who is indubitably a killer; she heard his voice at the time of the murder.
When Romaine arrives for an initial meeting with Robarts, she is smiling and cheerful, dressed in a black leather jacket and not at all the distraught wife. She states that she already has a husband. Leonard rescued her from the Russian zone in Germany for which she is grateful, but she is not married to him. She implies that Emily French was sexually attracted to Leonard and that he knew exactly what he was doing. Robarts is perplexed by this alluring and confident woman, worried that she does not have his client’s best interests at heart, as she undercuts everything that Leonard has said.
When Romaine does appear in court it is as a witness for the prosecution, testifying against Leonard, that he came home on the night of the murder with blood on his cuffs, saying “I killed her.” Robarts believes that Romaine, a professional actress, is lying and trying to set up Vole for some reason. Without revealing too much, it is safe to say, the plot thickens.
Despite actors having to lug furniture in and out for changes of scene, the chambers work remarkably well for the setting, making the atmosphere all the more real. There is also lovely work from sound designer Mic Pool who adds audience gasps and off stage footsteps as well as eerie music to remarkable effect. Although I usually feel sorry for actors whose only job is to stand around, the various police stationed around the court as well as the stenographer and clerks added to the court room experience.
Richard Clothier is excellent as Sir Wilfred, a good, solid lawyer who will go all out to defend a man he truly believes is innocent. Harry Reid portrays Leonard Vole as a likeable, naïve and charming man whose only fault is that his kindness gets him taken advantage of. He really brings home the very sinister side to the story, that one can be accused of a murder and have
no way of proving one’s innocence. Despite having little stage experience, Mr Reid has just the right combination of naturalness and size in his performance. Although a good part of the beginning is exposition as Leonard tells his long story, it kept me completely absorbed. Lucy Phelps as Romaine Vole has a difficult job as her character is very changeable. It must be obvious that Romaine is hiding something and yet it seems she gives the game away too quickly in her first scene. It may be suitable that her character is always theatrical but it also meant she was less believable when she testified.
Credit must go to director, Lucy Bailey, for keeping true to the spirit of Agatha Christie by imbuing the production with real energy and urgency while drawing us into this strange tale with its twists and turns, never forgetting the danger of the death penalty for a possibly innocent man. Christie is a master craftsman of the murder mystery but more than being a who dunnit, this play is a psychological drama about deceit and the very real fear that people are not who we think they are. Although Witness for the Prosecution is wildly entertaining it is also just the right amount disturbing, which makes it a timeless tale.
Image: Current cast in Witness for the Prosecution by Agatha Christie at London County Hall. Credit: Ellie Kurttz.
The Jungle, which has transferred from The Young Vic to the West End, immerses its London audience in the middle of the refugee encampment which was built up near Calais from 2015 to 2016. Playwrights Joe Murphy and Joe Robertson created the Good Chance Theatre in The Jungle in 2015, offering entertainment, music and workshops for the residents of the camp, which at its height numbered over 8,000. Rather than focusing on the activities on their theatre, the playwrights have written a fictionalised account of the founding of the camp by a few enterprising refugees from Afghanistan, Syria and Sudan, amongst other countries, and its demise a year later by French police with bulldozers. In between, a handful of well- meaning British people arrive, ranging from fresh out of Eton Sam to friendly alcoholic Boxer. The playwrights wisely do not centre the story on them but instead have Safi, a Syrian migrant and English literature major, act as narrator.
The Playhouse Theatre is completely transformed with audience members sitting on wooden benches (thankfully with throw cushions) around the action. On one side is Salar’s Afghan Café and the tables that some of the audience sit at double as walkways for the actors. Televisions dotted around the place play Bollywood Films. Delicious smells emanate from the kitchen, cast members offer round sweet chai and fresh bread. As the play begins, its starts at the end: the French authorities have ordered a “soft eviction” of the camp, saying the environment is unsafe. They have offered only 1500 homes around France, most of which will go to women and children. Meantime, a boy has been killed on the motorway, trying to get a “Good Chance” by smuggling himself into the UK in a lorry. The police arrive with tear gas and the makeshift city is destroyed.
The play then starts somewhere at the beginning, telling different story strands while still trying to move the whole cohesively forward as the refugees deal not only with their own dire situation but with the arrival of white British people who have decided to organise them. Young Sam plans to map out the city and build houses. Eighteen year old Beth starts a school and teaches English. Boxer is good at mending and building, while Paula looks after the children, many of whom are unaccompanied. It’s never clear exactly what Derek does other than bark orders and break up fights. Many of the young men are technically children but are looked after by the older men, such as fifteen year old Norullah, a cheerful trouble maker who works in Salar’s café and has become like a son to him. We hear the devastating story of Okot who escaped from Sudan only to be tortured in Libya as his captors demanded more money from his mother. Beth makes it her mission to help him get to the UK with the help of Kurdish smuggler Ali.
Crises small and large occur but, as Safi says, there is hope as well: the Muslims gather to pray together, no matter what their sect, Omid happily plays his guitar which he smuggled from Iran, everyone is learning English and every now and again there is good news from someone who has made it to the UK. Everyone has a mobile phone which they check constantly, searching for news from home and finding entertaining relief from their boredom of being in this limbo. We are reminded of how the British people can leave at any time when Sam suggests that he and Beth go to a hotel for night - just as friends of course – as they having been living in squalor for months and need a break. When Beth goes to rescue Okot from the police station, she takes both him and Safi to a hotel just to clean up the teenager who has been beaten by the police and needs a rest. It is illegal for refugees to be taken to a hotel as they have no passports, but Beth risks it anyway.
Although the play is happy to laugh at the sometimes misguided good intentions of the British, it is clear that they are there because their country is doing little for the refugees and they feel a need to help. Paula, most likely modelled on real life volunteer Liz Clegg, is the most effective in her clear intention to help the children. Sam takes on more than he can chew but although he comes from a privileged background, probably much like the Oxford educated playwrights, his heart is usually in the right place and he just wants to make a difference, as does Beth. The scene where she teaches the boys English by having them describe how they try to hide out in lorries is entertaining yet also drives home the point of how desperate and determined the migrants are.
There are outstanding performances that hold the play together and bring it authenticity. Chief among them is Ammar Haj Ahmad, a Syrian actor, who plays the kind hearted Safi. It is clear he will have a major career after this production and has already made a mark on the UK theatre scene. John Pfumojena, a Zimbabwean born actor, is brilliant as Okot. His monologue describing his perilous journey to
Calais through which he says he “died many times” is delivered absolutely straight which makes it all the more moving. Mr Pfumojena is also the musical director and composer for the production, clearly an artist to be reckoned with. British-Iranian actor Ben Turner is excellent as the fiery but warm hearted Salar as is Mohammad Amiri as his young cheeky assistant Norullah. There is a nice mixture of trained, highly experienced British actors playing the migrants with performers who are actual refugees, such as singer Mohamad Sarrar and Kung Fu master Yasin Moradi. Amongst the British characters, Rachel Redford as Beth and Jo McInnes as Paula stand out.
If I have one criticism it is that the play tries to do too much and may have benefited from telling the story from one person’s point of view. Although we do have sympathetic Safi at the centre, there is always lots of activity going on, actors running around and shouting in an attempt to depict the chaotic atmosphere of the camp, but it is sometimes too much. It seems petty to find fault when the creative team, directors Stephen Daldry and Justin Martin, along with the playwrights and the designer, Miriam Buether, have worked hard to recreate the experience of The Jungle to share with the world.
This is an important play which poses questions with no easy answers. Did the British volunteers help or make a situation worse? When refugees could have claimed asylum in mainland Europe, was it right to encourage them to risk their lives trying to get to the UK? The camp has now been destroyed but migrants still gather in the thousands in Calais, trying to cross to England. Although there is not much hope at the end of this play, the playwrights are still running their Good Chance Theatre for refugees in France. And hopefully audience members will feel moved after the performance to make a difference in their own way to help the refugee crisis by volunteering or donating.
The joys of open air cinema date back to 1932 New Jersey, when salesman and film fan Richard Hollingshead nailed a bedsheet between two trees in his yard and a Kodak projector to the hood of his car. He opened the world’s first commercial movie Drive-In the following year, proudly advertising “the whole family is welcome regardless of how noisy the children are.” By the 1950s there were over 4000 Drive-Ins across the USA. Famed for iconic roller-skating waitresses bringing cheeseburgers, shakes and fries right to your car window and boasting a reputation as teenage ‘passion pits’, Drive-Ins enjoyed many boom years. Then, with the coming of home videos and more profitable options like turning Drive-In lots into high rise property blocks, they faded almost to extinction.
Low and behold, outdoor movies are today enjoying a global comeback and nowhere more than in the UK, where screenings have become increasingly inventive. Who needs walls when you can bring cushions, blankets, picnics and homemade popcorn to an alfresco screen near you? This season’s quirkier venues include cathedrals, cemeteries, botanic gardens and a sunken amphitheatre.
Since 2010, The Nomad has been popping screens up in Brompton Cemetery, Hyde Park Lido, St Paul’s Cathedral Gardens and other intriguing locations, along with enticing add-ons like hot food, goody bags, blankets and magic carpets. It has a unique tag as “the pop-up cinema that gives back”, as it’s run primarily by volunteers and donates 100% of profits to charity.
Luna Cinema has a habit of hitting locations other screens can’t reach, like Windsor Racecourse, Bath’s Royal Crescent and Bolton Abbey. Luna Beach Cinema is hanging out on Brighton Beach. Opt for its VIP Beach Hut package for your very own beachside hut, luxury seating, complimentary mini-bar and butler service for the day. New this year is Luna Kids Cinema, the first outdoor cinema designed for children, with tempting sips and nibbles available from the Luna Kids Bar.
This summer, BP Big Screens will beam opera and ballet live and free to screens at Brighton Marina, Portsmouth’s Guildhall Square, Bristol’s Millennium Square, London’s Trafalgar Square and other spaces across the UK. Rooftop Cinema operates from three lofty London locations, promising comfy deckchairs, a wide range of daily shows and incomparable rooftop views.
Last but not least, Film4 brings two weeks of giant projections to the historic courtyard at Somerset House. Choose from surround-screen immersive showings of Labyrinth, Blue Velvet, Call Me By Your Name plus Behind The Screen, a series of talks, panel discussions and special events.
Summertime Britain is a food lovers’ paradise, with dozens of festivals, fairs and other tasty offerings where food and cooking take centre stage.
That’s certainly true at the Port Eliot Festival in Cornwall. Enjoying a magnificent setting on the grounds, woodlands and riverside of an historic house and former medieval monastery, Port Eliot has grown a reputation for words, music, fashion, flowers and extremely good food.
Over its four packed days and nights, festival goers can savour a delicious blend of chefs, cooks, bakers, brewers and growers as they share skills, kitchen secrets and top quality eats. Caught by the River and other stages welcome writers, musicians, conversationalists and comedians, Sipsmith Gin Palace hosts jazz parties, martini masterclasses and plenty of opportunities for G&T by the river, and the Fashion Foundation takes fashion to imaginative new heights.
Wellbeing and wildlife have a big part to play at Port Eliot. There are activities like astronomy walks, wild cookery, fire building, flamenco dancing, herbal first aid and wild swimming. You can stop by Larks Haven for wellness workshops, disco yoga, hot tubs and mindful masculinity sessions. We recommend signing up early for the wilderness survival masterclass with award-winning actress Teri Hatcher (aka Susan from Desperate Housewives). This year sees the debut of Wildlings Wood, a magical forest glade where children can dance, sing, frolic and forage all day long.
As nowhere is considered off limits, the Festival also wends its way into Port Eliot House itself for tours, talks and films.
If, like the Hungry Caterpillar, you are still hungry, there’s plenty more on this summer’s culinary menu. You might even say there’s a festival for every food fetish. You can gorge on local oysters, crabs and whelks washed down with champagne at Pommery Dorset Seafood Festival or turn up the heat at the Northeast Chilli Festival. Experience all things sausage at Lincoln’s Sausage Festival or hone the art of keeping vampires away at Isle of Wight’s Garlic Food Festival. And Corfe Castle Food and Drink Festival looks perfect for lovers of romantic castle ruins and spectacular country views.
For classical music lovers it doesn’t get much better than the BBC Promenade Concerts, affectionately known as the Proms. A British national treasure since Victorian times, this world’s greatest festival of classical music roars into London’s Royal Albert Hall mid July, setting off 90 concerts and two months of non- stop musical feasting.
The original Proms’ promise, to create a joyous celebration of music and reach the widest possible audience, means there are plenty of affordable options, including half- price for under 18s and 1300 ‘promming’ (standing) tickets for every Prom at £6.
Each Prom Season gets bigger and more imaginative. This year welcomes a gobsmacking choice of orchestras, choirs and premier musicians from around the globe. There are 90 artist debuts and 42 world premieres, intimate late night Proms, lunchtime Proms, Prom ‘Extras’ and loads of free concerts and events for families.
As well as the usual generous helpings of Beethoven, Bach and Mozart, amongst this year’s delights are a Tango Prom, Havana meets Kingston Prom, Folk Music Prom and a jazzy evening with multi-instrumentalist sensation Jacob Collier. Reach-outs to other venues include Proms at Lincoln’s Drill Hall and Gilbert and Sullivan staged in the beautifully restored Victorian Theatre at Alexandra Palace in north London.
The Proms love anniversaries and 2018 is no exception. This year’s Proms feature works by 24 women composers to honour the 100th anniversary of Women’s Right to Vote. Debussy and Lili Boulanger will be honoured on the centenary of their deaths.
The Proms offer a massive grand salute to American composer, conductor and musical personality, Leonard Bernstein, who would have been 100 this year, including celebratory performances of West Side Story and On the Town. As a child growing up in 1960s America, this writer vividly recalls the joy of watching Bernstein’s groundbreaking Young People’s Concerts on national television. Several Proms will introduce new audiences to music as a tribute to Bernstein, the inspirational educationalist.
As ever, the season culminates in that beloved ritual known as the Last Night of the Proms. Last Night festivities, complete with traditional fancy dress, party poppers, balloons and flag-waving sing-a-longs to ‘Rule, Britannia!’ and ‘Land of Hope and Glory,’ are always sold out. That’s where Proms in the Park come in, created in 1996 so that the overwhelming numbers of Last Night fans won’t miss out on the fun. In addition to the Royal Albert Hall finale, audiences can choose from four open air spectacles nationwide. Park Proms in Belfast, Glasgow, Swansea and London’s Hyde Park bring the four UK nations together in song and spirit with the help of tirelessly enthusiastic compere Michael Ball and live big screen linkups.
Hyde Park’s stellar headliners will be Gladys Knight, Josh Groban, Matt Goss and Joseph Calleja. For the grand finale, Prom audiences join celebrities, choirs and fireworks as Prommers across the land sing, wave Union Jacks, pop poppers and let go of all that British reserve for another year.
Never mind if you can’t make it to the Last Night in person— you can join the party via giant video screens around the country or sing along by telly, tablet, smartphone, laptop or radio, thanks to the BBC.
Further information:
BBC Henry Wood Promenade Concerts, 13 July-8 September 2018
Witness for the Prosecution was originally adapted by Agatha Christie in 1951 for the stage from a short story she had written in 1925 entitled Traitor Hands. Her producer, Peter Saunders, was so keen to see the story adapted that he wrote his own version which she rejected to write her own. Apparently, she was drawn to the challenge of keeping the suspense of a murder mystery going before a live audience in a theatre, rather than in a book which can be read at leisure. The play was a huge success and one can see why; it is enormous fun. This site-specific production, set in the Council Chamber of London County Hall, makes the courtroom scenes a more immersive experience, even using audience members as the jury.
The Jungle, which has transferred from The Young Vic to the West End, immerses its London audience in the middle of the refugee encampment which was built up near Calais from 2015 to 2016. Playwrights Joe Murphy and Joe Robertson created the Good Chance Theatre in The Jungle in 2015, offering entertainment, music and workshops for the residents of the camp, which at its height numbered over 8,000. Rather than focusing on the activities on their theatre, the playwrights have written a fictionalised account of the founding of the camp by a few enterprising refugees from Afghanistan, Syria and Sudan, amongst other countries, and its demise a year later by French police with bulldozers. In between, a handful of well- meaning British people arrive, ranging from fresh out of Eton Sam to friendly alcoholic Boxer. The playwrights wisely do not centre the story on them but instead have Safi, a Syrian migrant and English literature major, act as narrator.
Low and behold, outdoor movies are today enjoying a global comeback and nowhere more than in the UK, where screenings have become increasingly inventive. Who needs walls when you can bring cushions, blankets, picnics and homemade popcorn to an alfresco screen near you? This season’s quirkier venues include cathedrals, cemeteries, botanic gardens and a sunken amphitheatre.
Summertime Britain is a food lovers’ paradise, with dozens of festivals, fairs and other tasty offerings where food and cooking take centre stage.
For classical music lovers it doesn’t get much better than the BBC Promenade Concerts, affectionately known as the Proms. A British national treasure since Victorian times, this world’s greatest festival of classical music roars into London’s Royal Albert Hall mid July, setting off 90 concerts and two months of non- stop musical feasting.
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