Oliver Chris as Donald Doyle Davidson and Billie Piper as Paige Britain in Great Britain
Photo by Johan Pearson
Satires are rarely performed in London. Thinking back, I think Great Britain is the first one that I have seen. I now am going to search out anything that can be either as fun or as contemporary as this piece at the National. Mirroring the rise and fall of the News of the World, Great Britain follows the life of Paige Britain, news editor at 'the Free Press', and explores the world of hacking and corruption in the media. The strangely familiar plot line is superbly scripted by One Man, Two Guvnors writer Richard Bean and has a strong cast headed by Billie Piper, of Doctor Who fame, who does a sterling job of playing a cutthroat editor. The person who is the main source of laughs is Sulley Kassam,the Police Commissioner, played by Aaron Neil, who brings the house down with the video parodies of his speeches. However, perhaps my favorite character and performance of the show is the Assistant Commissioner, played by Bluestone 42 actor Oliver Chris, who grounds the play into reality and giving it a message and moral value. In general, it is a spine-tinglingly funny with a bite familiar to Private Eye readers. This continues the zizzling year for subsidized theatre.
Great Britain is playing at the National Theatre until 23rd August before transferring to Theatre Royal Haymarket from 10th September.
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