THE SLAVES OF SOLITUDE: ★★★★ FROM THE MAIL ON SUNDAY
Posted on 5 November 2017. By: Robert Gore-Langton
Posted in: Announcements

This loving adaptation – by Nicholas Wright – of Patrick Hamilton’s forgotten novel is set in 1943 in a suicidally dull boarding house in Henley-on-Thames, away from the Blitz.
It’s the story of the timorous thirtysomething Miss Roach, whose romance with a flirty Yank lieutenant is met with competition from a fellow female resident, an ageing German refugee sexpot. Much of the action is set in the dining room, with its small flock of old ladies – one of the evening’s chief joys.
Here, the ghastly resident Mr Thwaites (Clive Francis, fabulous) rules with his mock- Tudor lingo: ‘Hast thou not been seen in a hostelry with a young fraulein of Hunnish heritage?’ etc.
Blending cruelty and comedy, wartime is evoked not just in the cliched Spam fritters and pink gins: you can feel the residents’ mustn’t-grumble loneliness seeping into the wallpaper.
Fluidly directed by Jonathan Kent, it all rests heavily on a rich, performance from Fenella Woolgar as the prim Miss Roach, whose life is disturbed by a violent, erotic love. An absorbing evening of soup plates and quivering hearts.
To read the full review click here to visit The Mail on Sunday online.
Latest from Twitter:
-
Hampstead Theatre @Hamps_Theatre
Lovely to see #HTSeaCreatures featured! @lyngardner @StagedoorLDN Sea Creatures opens this week Downstairs! 🎉 Ti… https://t.co/sMWRaWKWV9
9 hours ago -
Hampstead Theatre @Hamps_Theatre
Did you catch @Beckshumps on @TimesRadio talking to @alexisconran on Saturday? Rebecca talks all about Blackout Son… https://t.co/ZZ6DFPPxDo
9 hours ago -
Hampstead Theatre @Hamps_Theatre
RT @greatplaceNCZ: Next week we host our last few FREE workshops as part of the #CommunityCreates Spring Term! Including Play in a Day deli…
10 hours ago
KEEPING YOU SAFE AT HAMPSTEAD

RESPECT PERSONAL SPACE

FACE MASKS ENCOURAGED

STATE OF THE ART VENTILATION

ENHANCED CLEANING

CONTACTLESS TICKETS

HAND SANITISING STATIONS

CASHLESS PAYMENT