Two political comedies are funny, but far from revolutionary
Whipping It Up New Ambassadors Theatre, London WC2
King of Hearts Hampstead Theatre, London NW3
What does one want from political satire? An amusing insider's view, eternal human truths, or biting social agitation? Whipping It Up, by Steve Thompson, offers quite a lot of the first, a bit of the second and none of the third. The play is set in the whips' office of the Tory party just before Christmas in the not-so-distant future. Beside tinsel and fairy lights on the back wall, a montage of ministers' pictures shows that David Cameron is PM, but with a tiny majority of three. Meanwhile, a distinct sense of cynical camaraderie is at play as Alastair, the deputy chief whip (Robert Bathurst), explains to a new backbencher, Guy (Nicholas Rowe), what his opinion of the electorate must be. "Happiness is the sight of one's constituency slowly disappearing in the rear-view mirror," opines Alastair, pouring the new bug a glass of bubbly, before putting him on the rack about a vote that night.
The office is run by Fulton, the chief whip (Richard Wilson), and his two underlings, the classy Alastair and the boorish Tim (Lee Ross). They are in a permanent headlock with the opposition, represented by Delia, deputy chief whip, played with venomous force by Helen Schlesinger.
As political drama, this is no revolutionary text, but it is well-plotted, and Thompson's witty unveiling of the shenanigans used by a precarious government is hilarious: the bribery, the dirty tricks (hiding in loos, late votes) and the uneasy relationship with the media. "Are we principled? Or demented?" asks Tim, as he unfurls promises of ministerial glory for the wavering backbencher.
At its heart is an examination of political loyalty, as seen in the glorious, grand figure of Wilson's chief whip, a man who cares for nothing but his party's triumph, and will fall on his sword in order to ensure it. Wilson does his usual curmudgeon with a twinkle, but his charisma is well served by the role of Fulton, a man in full command of both Hansard and a remarkable vocabulary of profanities. I don't know what a "titwhack" is, but when Wilson spits out the word you get the idea. This is a cavalier but essentially supportive revue of Westminster life. It might even be prophetic, whereas Alistair Beaton's King of Hearts, playing at the Hampstead Theatre, verges on the implausible.
Again, the action is placed a few years in the future. The king has had a riding accident and is close to death. In the Sandringham drawing room, near to HM's chamber, are gathered Nick, the PM (Justin Salinger), and Stephen, leader of the opposition (Jeff Rawle), debating whether or not to switch off the life support. A supporting cast, led by the dutiful Palace flunkey (deliciously played by Alister Cameron) pitted against the PM's iconoclastic adviser (Caroline Loncq), provides much of the laughs, as do plans for the funeral which, as befits a "modern monarchy", will feature music from the Arctic Monkeys.
Then Prince Richard (Ben Righton) turns up. He has fallen for Nasreen, a British Muslim (Zahra Ahmadi), whom he plans to marry, and to whose religion he intends to convert. Would the British public tolerate a Muslim king? Would Westminster? Would the White House? Beaton brings the issues out, and draws some interesting parallels with the abdication crisis, but in the end the trickery of the plot defeats him, and matters are wrapped up in a most unsatisfying manner.
The play cleverly mocks the vain solipsism of British politics, but, as with Whipping It Up, there is no anger - more a sense of the fond piss-take. The panic about what type of Muslim Nasreen might be is nothing more than a funny moment. "Well, there's your Muslim who is one of us, and there's your extreme Muslim who eats halal Mars Bars," explains Stephen, helpfully. Our elected leaders are unprincipled straws, vulnerable to the slightest shift in public opinion and fawning repulsively over the royal family. Well, tell us something new.
For further information visit http://www.theambassadors.com and http://www.hampsteadtheatre.com
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