Ali Bashes Bush with Stage Monologue???

Are theatregoers ready for another bout of Bush bashing? The most overt example, Justin Butcher's Kubrik-esque satirical farce The Madness of George Dubya, had mixed reviews but still managed to tap into the zeitgeist with an extended run at the Arts Theatre, where it closed on 23 August 2003. Now, writer, historian and self-confessed lifelong radical Tariq Ali would like to have a go. As Ali explains in this week's 20 Questions interview, "I'm tempted by writing a 30-minute monologue: I have thought of doing a Bush monologue. It's very difficult to pull off, but it tempts me." In any case, Ali must surely have enough research material for such a project - his latest book, Bush in Babylon, about the American 'recolonization' of Iraq is released next month. And speaking of such things, we're wondering what's become of the previously mooted Iraqi-based satire from the pen of Feelgood's Alistair Beaton. Back in April, producers Michael Grade and Raymond Gubbay held auditions for Saddam Hussein look-alikes for the production, which was then tipped for a topical West End opening around June (See The Goss, 23 Apr 2003). Though we understand that Beaton completed the first draft of the comedy over the summer, some industry insiders tell us the whole project was a joke to begin with.

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