Noel Coward Theatre – until 5 September 2025
Reviewed by Claire Roderick
5*****
This hilarious sixties spy spoof is simply spectacular. Packed with clever wordplay, terrible puns, pratfalls and perfectly staged stunts, Mischief have hit the jackpot again.
Writers Henry Lewis and Henry Shields know exactly what diehard Mischief fans want – and dial it up to eleven. With MI6 taken out by a turncoat, KGB and CIA agents close in to intercept the missing plans for Project Midnight. The intel points to a rendezvous in a London hotel so the spies are soon casing the guests, bugging rooms and causing chaos. With a conference and a secret shopper on the premises, manager Albert (Greg Tannahill) has a lot on his hands, but goes the extra mile trying to help baker Bernard (henry Shields) propose to his uninterested girlfriend Rosemary (Adele James). The presence of Douglas Woodbead (Henry Lewis) – no, not the cricketer – running his lines for his James Bond audition creates more nonsense in what becomes a very cleverly staged traditional farce on steroids.
The writing is top-notch, with tongue twisters and verbal misunderstandings that the Two Ronnies would be proud of, running jokes that never lose impact, and a gag-filled plot full of visual and physical comedy that will make your face ache. Matt DiCarlo slick direction feels cinematic, with wonderful sight gags as chases along hotel corridors and through streets never let the pace lag between set pieces. David Farley’s set design is brilliant, and the technical wonders that happen on the two floors of bedrooms are breathtakingly funny and clever. Johanna Town’s lighting, Jon Fiber’s (for JollyGoodTunes) sound and Deborah Andrew’s costume design add to the sixties film atmosphere.
The cast is made up of Mischief originators and regulars, and they are all at the top of their game. Dave Hearn is wonderfully earnest as CIA agent Lance Buchanan, joined on this mission by his mother, Janet (fantastically domineering Nancy Zamit), while Charlie Russell is hilariously on edge as KGB agent Elena Popov, trying to cope with her hapless partner Sergei (the brilliant Chris Leask) and his obsession with their covers’ backstories. Greg Tannahill is manically cheerful as he tries to please the increasingly unhinged guests. Douglas Woodbead is a pompous ham, so of course Henry Lewis is playing him! Lewis’s skill with this type of character is a joy to watch, and his every groan of despair brings gales of laughter from the audience. Adele James is the perfect frustrated straight woman as madness ensues around her, and Henry Shields is gloriously confused as he gets roped in by both sets of spies to find Project Midnight. His baking curse words get spicier as Bernard gets more out of his depth.
The cast’s chemistry and physicality are sublime (Shelley Maxwell’s movement direction creates epically silly fight sequences), and this quick-paced comedy has a few juicy twists that create fantastic payoffs – the spy plot never gets lost amongst the chaos.
God tier comedy.