Theatre Royal, Nottingham – until Saturday 1st August 2026
Reviewed by Chris Jarvis
5*****
Oh my goodness – what a show!
I can’t find enough words to describe the completely crazy collection of characters, costumes and music played by the actors appearing on stage tonight. Over 80 different characters and costumes were portrayed by these 5 amazing actors, many appearing more than once, meaning each actor was changing character and back again numerous times. The spontaneity and fluidity of these changes was mind blowing!
It was made even more crazy by the cross-gender casting – I’d just about got used to Hester Leggatt being played by Jordan Pearson when he’d appear as another character of a different sex!
The Nottingham Theatre Royal website describes Operation Mincemeat as the 2024 Olivier Award-winning Best New Musical. It was first performed in London in 2019 in an 80-seater studio. By 2023 even with the pandemic causing havoc to live theatre, it became London’s biggest hit with over one hundred 5* reviews, making it the best-reviewed show in West End history. Now also a Tony Award winning musical on Broadway!
The programme gives a brilliant timeline of the show’s incredible success as well as some very interesting information on the people who pulled off this true mission. I don’t usually feel a programme is worth having but I’d suggest buying this one.
Operation Mincemeat was the codename given to a WW2 espionage mission in 1943 coordinated within MI5 by ‘The Twenty Committee’ – named from the number twenty in Roman numerals – XX or “double cross”! Their role was to manage double-agents and plan deceptions. Operation Mincemeat was the brainchild of one of a group of 5 people who were portrayed on stage tonight – Ewen Montagu (Katy Ellis), Charles Cholmondeley (Sean Carey). John Bevan (Jamie-Rose Monk), Jean Leslie (Charlotte Hanna-Williams) and Hester Leggatt (Jordan Pearson).
Charles, a nerdy scientist, came up with the idea but had no confidence with which to share it. After confiding in the aristocratic, egotistical Ewen Montagu, this crazy plan was shared, agreed by Sir Winston Churchill and became their next mission. The plan being to dress up a corpse, give him an identity as a British pilot, drop him in the ocean off Spain with a briefcase full of fake invasion plans, in the hope that it would find its way to Hitler! What could go wrong??? Sounds like a brilliant subject for a farce or musical comedy but believe it or not – IT WORKED and probably helped us win the war!
The set changes were simple but totally on target, the 20 songs performed with great gusto by the 80 or so characters. I didn’t know the songs but they told the story and I felt as though I did. The lighting was exciting and the clever use of hats and torches to swap to ‘life on the ocean’ was brilliant. The costumes were both true to life and full of sparkle.
The acting was “something else”! I loved them all and could easily pick each of them as my favourite. I imagine they are mentally and physically exhausted after every performance as they gave their all! They must also be exhilarated at the standing ovation from the Nottingham audience that I imagine is repeated every night.
Don’t miss it! It’s a great night’s entertainment and my congratulations to the four University friends who formed SpitLip and portrayed this amazing mission as a musical comedy that is becoming a global phenomenon.