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ED2016 1/5 Reviews ED2016 Theatre Reviews
More Scouse, Saddam? (Sad Ham Productions)
By Francesca Peschier | Published on Saturday 20 August 2016
The true story of Liverpool decorator David Thelwell, held hostage by Saddam Hussein whilst renovating the dictator’s palace, is a remarkable one, sadly let down by this lazy production. Little care is taken with mimed props or historical accuracy (references abound to “hashtagging” despite it being 1990) and female characters are reduced to dolly bird stereotypes that not even a hilarious Salt-N-Pepa dance number can redeem. Whilst writer Mike Howl has shoehorned some classic Scouse humour into the script, the show never dares look at the darker side of Thelwell’s captivity or its complex politics. Neither does it allow itself to descend into the full on farce that it clearly longs to be, despite claiming “this is anything but a pantomime”.
theSpace @ Symposium Hall, until 20 Aug.
tw rating 1/5 | [Francesca Peschier]
