Porridge

Synopsis

Prepare for laughs-a-plenty as Fletch, Godber and the other inmates of Slade Prison take on the system under the nose of the ever suspicious Mr Mackay in what promises to be a sure-fire comic treat for the whole family.

Our Review:

Anne Morley-Priestman - 2 September 2009

Audiences for stage shows based on popular television series include the devotees of the series as well as general theatre-goers. Porridge probably straddles both types. It's several decades since Ronnie Barker personified the lovable lag Stanley Fletcher in his attempts to get the better of prison officers MacKay and Barrowclough on the screen. Now Shaun Williamson has the chance to break out.

The script for the play is by Dick Clment and Ian La Frenais, writers of the original series. It gives us life in Slade Prison through a sequence of short episodes, beginning as a new intake arrives. It includes Scot McLaren, who's of West Indian descent, naive-but-nice Godber and recidivist Fletcher. There's an extremely good, flexible set by Paul Wills which properly dwarfs the actors within it; laughter here bounces off high brick walls.

Director Gavin McAlinden keeps it all moving, as though to emphasise how static are these active people's surroundings. It...

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Latest User Review

Stage Critic - 27 December 2009:

Excellent stage version with best performances coming from 'Godber and Ryan Winston as McLaren whose hardman role is totally different from the comedy of the other actors....

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