The third episode in Oldham Coliseum's mini-podcast series is a 20 minute radio play for two voices by Sorcha McCaffrey titled, 'Pop And Chips'. It tells the story of a young lady in her mid twenties and her father, as they have their first email communication (done on a whim!) and subsequently their first meeting after his leaving her with her mum 20 years' ago.
Spoken as two sepearte but connected monologues, we are taken through these events in the minds and memories of these two people. It's descriptive writing and not a duologue. Although it does bounce about from one to the other throughout, it isn't all one first and then the other.
McCaffrey's writing is easy and truthful, but there is also a lot of peripheral descriptions too, which not only help to set the scene and place, they also make to give us a better understanding of the characters without it being signposted as "character exposition" which was a nice touch.
Shaun works on an oil rig and lives in Scotland, whilst Saffron (Saf) is living with her girlfriend and wants to have a child with her. The awkwardness of first meeting, combined with the recollections of their past times together were handled really well. We really got a superb impression of their butterflies and anxieties as well as their desires to see each other and reconnect but neither really knowing how.
I would have liked to have learned more as to why Shaun left her and her mum. We get a tantalising titbit about 'mental health problems' which would have been nice to have been explored more. I am also uncertain as to whether or not Saf would blurt out that she is a lesbian and wants to have a baby on her first meeting with her dad in over 20 years. However that's the writing, not the performance.
Directed by Oldham Coliseum's Artistic Director Chris Lawson, and performed by Cora Kirk (Saf) and William Travis (Shaun), this was a heartfelt, sincere and sympathetic treatment of the play, and an enjoyable listen. It certainly made you want to know more. Do they ever contact each other again? Where is the mother? etc.
Reviewer - Matthew Dougall
on - 3/6/20
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