This production, produced by Bill Elms, is billed as a fast-paced, smash hit comedy, and aims to raise awareness of domestic violence using humour as a means to get the message across but unfortunately it doesn’t fulfil the brief for many reasons.
It has taken the use of stereotypes to a
different level so much so that it just was not funny. This was evidenced by
the many empty seats when audience members didn’t return after the interval and
those who left shortly after the second act began.
One of the contributory flaws was that the
accents used by the leading ladies were so broadly Scouse it was difficult to
understand what they were saying throughout the performance, mainly from Lynne Fitzgerald
(Sue), Sam Alton (Nessa), and Crissy Rock (Lily). Director, Lynne Francis, (Tricia), played
the outsider from Manchester.
Fitzgerald and Alton used contorted faces throughout
which also didn’t help with their diction. Additionally, there were some sound
issues in that although the cast were wearing head mics, a lot of their speech delivery
could not be heard meaning a lot of their one-liners and jokes were missed.
The script was interspersed with well-known
songs with altered lyrics which came across as rather amateurish, something
which might have been performed at a school play rather than at a well-established
theatre with well-known Liverpudlian actors.
Before the show began, there was an
announcement relayed that the play contained substantial references to domestic
violence and that if audience members wanted to leave, this was acceptable. This should have been made clearer on advertising
and publicity for the show, i.e. on posters etc., as once a ticket has been
bought and the show has started, it’s rather too late to change one’s
mind. The only options are to sit
through the show feeling uncomfortable with the show content or to get up and
leave and feeling disappointed at the show not fulfilling the brief, (and
feeling that the ticket paid for was a waste of money), which unfortunately is
what a lot of people did.
If the aim of writer, Lynne Francis, was to deliver an evening of laughter, warmth and recognisable Scouse spirit that immediately wins over its audience, unfortunately, on this occasion, she has failed. The Liverpudlian stereotypes were far too over-exaggerated to the point of being disliked rather than taken to one’s heart and the storyline was verging on the ridiculous, as it was so unbelievable. Classic farce is contained in Act 2 and the script became even more far-fetched.
The simple set showed the outside of four houses
with different coloured doors, belonging to the leading characters, with spotlights
above each door. The actors used a seating area to sit and chat on and deliver
their lines. The script required Lily,
Nessa and Sue to be dressed in pyjamas with rollers in their hair depicting the
Scouse attire sometimes seen across the city. Props such as penis shaped straws
and chocolate covered sex toys were used to raise laughs along with expletives and
sexual themed jokes.
The script contains sharp one-liners and is set
against a backdrop of bullying behavior and physical assault, the writer has
tried to balance comedy and emotion but unfortunately hasn’t been successful
this time.
The premise of the play is excellent, a story
with three characters with long-standing friendships relaying their stories, with
a script steeped in local culture, incorporating a simple set enabling the
audience to focus on the characters and their stories. But for me the production
didn’t live up to the promise of “a riotous, fast-paced comedy
following the lives of three loud, no-nonsense Liverpool women and one nervous
newcomer, all navigating life, love, loyalty, and lipstick on a tightly knit
street”.
This production is not for those
easily offended by bad language, sexual innuendo or the portrayal of domestic
violence issues.
Desperate Scousewives on Tour at
St Helens Theatre Royal 12th June 2026 and The Epstein Theatre 16th
& 17th June 2026.
See https://www.epsteintheatre.com/whats-on/desperate-scousewives/#book-now
https://www.scousewivesonstage.com/
Reviewer: Anne Horne
On: 16th June 2026
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