‘Searingly theatrical… This pacy, brainy surveillance thriller should be widely watched’ | ★★★★ The Guardian

‘A gripping thriller about how we’re ‘protected’ that deserves packed houses at Hampstead, possibly a transfer, and maybe even a TV spin-off…Roxana Silbert – making her debut production as Hampstead’s artistic director – has found a play that is genuinely for today’
| ★★★★ The Telegraph

‘An exceptionally well-plotted thriller… Roxana Silbert directs a slick, high-tech show’ | ★★★★ The Daily Mail

‘Intelligent and witty… It’s rare to see a good thriller on stage, let alone one that connects convincingly with the concerns of our tech-riven age. Roxana Silbert’s production is beautifully acted, on a handsome set by Tom Piper that mixes the figurative with the realistic.’ | The Times

‘[An] engrossing thriller… Roxana Silbert’s production moves sleekly between online activity and meatspace, filling our pockets with paranoia’ | ★★★★ The Sunday Times

‘Thrillingly directed.. Blyth’s accomplished first play is sure to make even the most trusting spectator question the nature of government surveillance’ | ★★★★ The Sunday Express

‘[A] sharp contemporary play about the way we live and what we value.’ | The Financial Times 

‘Whip-smart new thriller – grips like a vice…’ | ★★★★ The Stage

‘A fascinating examination of how technology has overtaken what is legally allowable in terms of prying into the lives of others in the name of protecting the nation… This is meaty, compelling stuff…’ | Whatsonstage

Neil and Zef are two twenty-something computer whizzes with questionable dress sense and a highly developed interest in video games and Netflix. They’re also the UK’s ‘National Defence Information Security Team’ – recruited by GCHQ for their sky-high IQs and ability to work quickly and discreetly, no questions asked.

With unfettered access to the world’s data and infinite powers of electronic intrusion, these unlikely agents are essential cogs in the national security machine.  But when their window onto intelligence operations shows them more than they were meant to see, they begin to question their roles in a system whose reach is unlimited but whose safeguards are not…

Al Blyth’s explosive espionage thriller challenges the ‘nothing to hide, nothing to fear’ mantra and explores how we can live honestly, love freely, and stay authentic when the advances in cutting-edge technology outpace the law.

The Haystack is Blyth’s first full-length play and Roxana Silbert makes her directing debut as Hampstead Theatre’s Artistic Director.

The cast will include Lucy Black as Denise, Oliver Johnstone as Neil, Rona Morison as Cora, Enyi Okoronkwo as Zef and Sarah Woodward as Hannah.