When We Are Married (Oberon Modern Plays)

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Some members of the Conservative Party, including Winston Churchill, expressed concern that Priestley might be expressing left-wing views on the programme, and, to his dismay, Priestley was dropped after his talk on 20th October 1940.

Northern Broadsides create a highly comedic and warm live experience that is a joy to share with other audiences. I just hope they keep this up, and they continue in this enjoyable vein. When We Are Married, presented by Shaw Festival Theatre in Niagara-on-the-Lake Ontario | Shaw Festival Theatre – Great theatre in the heart of Niagara Wine Country". Archived from the original on 11 September 2014 . Retrieved 2 September 2014. Joan Sydney: Neighbours and A Country Practice star dies at 83". BBC News. 6 January 2023 . Retrieved 6 January 2023. BBC's Play of the Month broadcast an adaptation on 29 December 1975 directed by David Giles with John Stratton as Joseph Helliwell, Beryl Reid as Maria Helliwell, Eric Porter as Albert Parker, Patricia Routledge as Annie Parker, Richard Pearson as Herbert Soppitt, Thora Hird as Clara Soppitt, Shirley Steedman as Ruby Birtle, Sheila Burrell as Mrs. Northrop, Ronnie Barker as Henry Ormonroyd and Sheila Reid as Lottie Grady. [11] They talk about fashion here & there but there's actually not much variety in clothing visible… actors had been repeating clothes constantly…When We Are Married is a domestic comedy set in 1908, in a house belonging to a dull, seen-better-days couple, Alderman Joseph Helliwell and his wife Maria (Mark Stratton and Geraldine Fitzgerald). They’ve got two other rather dull married couples joining them: the Soppitts (Steve Huison and Kate Anthony) and the Parkers (Adrian Hood and Sue Devaney). They’re all celebrating their joint wedding anniversary of 25 years, but all isn’t well when a young man named Gerald (Luke Adamson) pops into the house and tells them that their marriages were never authorised. The other prize role is that of the tipsy local photographer, Henry Ormonroyd; and Roy Hudd now brings to it a lifetime of music-hall expertise. With his too short trousers and his overlong sleeves, he looks like a Cruikshank caricature. And merely to see him making a rhino-like charge through a doorway with an extended tripod or essaying drunkenly balletic steps to the tune of Dear Old Pals is to be reminded of the pleasures of vaudevillian physical comedy. The bombshell about the illegal marriages was delivered with barely suppressed glee by the new la-di-dah organist (Danny Washington) and this ‘right to-do’ allowed the audience to see the fault-lines and power plays in the three central relationships. When Priestley left the army he studied at Cambridge University, where he completed a degree in Modern History and Political Science. Subsequently he found work as theatre reviewer with the Daily News, and also contributed to the Spectator, the Challenge and Nineteenth Century. His earliest books included The English Comic Characters (1925), The English Novel (1927), and English Humour (1928). His breakthrough came with the immensely popular novel The Good Companions, published in 1929, and Angel Pavement followed in 1930. He emerged, too, as a successful dramatist with such plays as Dangerous Corner (1932), Time and the Conways (1937), When We Are Married (1938) and An Inspector Calls (1947). Simon Higlett's lovingly-recreated sitting room, where all the action takes place, got a well-deserved round of applause when the curtain went up. And Christopher Luscmbe's excellent direction ensures there's space for both the characterisations and Priestley's dialogue to shine.

Have realistic hopes and the show delivers well …hope for misunderstandings ...hope for SLS (second lead syndrome) hope for a not so necessary leap...hope for typical gender role reversal through horror movies and roller coaster rides (that’s the typical way to describe things...I am not a discriminating fella ...both are allowed to be scared...) ….hope for a lot of cute scenes and laughs...hope for fillers ….hope for a cliched drama ...and there you are ...this drama will meet all your expectations ! (aren’t you wondering ….why am I stressing so much on cliches ….bec the drama wouldn’t exist without them...no not even an ep) Second male lead… not evil or selfish… he was ready to become just a friend & silently help her … I really pity him… T_T The acting ...on point in most cases ...the third couple storyline was neither interesting nor fresh and I mostly skipped through them ….our main couple ...with a fairly high share of screen time ...do deliver and ...our second leads ….yep they do fit their roles perfectly ….but sadly do feel a bit underdeveloped …! Set in a prosperous woollen town in Yorkshire's West Riding, 'When We Are Married' is a comedy which has stood the test of time relatively well. Now a septuagenarian, it's as much a historical piece as a comedy, but it's also one of those plays that has actors fighting for parts because of the richness of the characters, and the riches to be found in Priestley's unique concept and nimble dialogue. This fine ensemble make the most of every moment. Maureen Lipman as Clara Soppitt employs her exceptional comic timing to great effect as her mousey husband (Sam Kelly) suddenly finds his voice and exerts his authority. Simon Rouse's bombastic Councillor Parker has to rethink his marital stance as his initially meek wife Annie (Michele Dotrice) bluntly tells him that he's not only "pompous, dull and stingy" but also "very, very dreary". And David Horovitch's Alderman Helliwell finds his temper strained as his better half Maria (played by Susie Blake) threatens to leave him and the drudgery she endures in running the household.I suspect that this revival is most likely to be appreciated by those of a certain age. Though it is dated in terms of the societal values it portrays, there's also much which feels modern, especially in terms of role reversal. But it is a rather 'northern' play in terms of both the style of humour and some of the linguistic niceties. For example, I don't hear many people in London describing an argument as 'fratching', even though it is correctly listed in the dictionary. So I'm not sure that West End audiences will fully appreciate the nuances in Priestly's well-observed description. Still, it has endearing charm, great characters and more than enough humour to make for a good night out. There's also excellent support from Jodie McNee as the chirpy maid from Rotherham; Lynda Baron as the cook/ housekeeper who listens at keyholes and treats her employers with open contempt; and Roy Hudd is photographer Henry Ormonroyd who has more interest in alcohol than taking snaps. His prolific output continued right up to his final years, and to the end he remained the great literary all-rounder. His favourite among his books was for many years the novel Bright Day, though he later said he had come to prefer The Image Men. Rutter is on fine form here as an alcohol-loving Yorkshire Argus photographer, bringing a lovely and infectious dynamic energy to the stage. His fellow performers feed off this, and the three husbands are a trio of well-balanced, well-considered performances in their own right. Occasionally, there are times when I think things could be slightly sharper: character responses are sometimes sluggish, though I have a feeling this will be ironed out when the company hits its stride with the piece on its upcoming tour. At times, some directorial decisions also seem a bit out of place. When Gerald tells the three men that their marriages are all false, the stakes for the characters rise dramatically, and Gerald takes perhaps a little too much delight in taunting men with much more power than him, even in a situation where he’s ostensibly in control.