The writer and producer spoke to Love London Love Culture about Cream Tea and Incest, now playing at The Hope Theatre following a run at the 2017 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
For those who are coming along – what is Cream Tea and Incest all about? Going in expecting Wodehouse might leave you feeling a bit empty – a straight Wodehouse imitation would be utterly pointless. He was just too good.The Jeeves books were also already quite satirical. What could I possibly have to say about them? Cream Tea and Incest has a silly Englishman and his loyal valet and… that’s about it. It’s a very gag heavy show and has lots of plot. Miles of plot. I’d actually advise against trying to follow the plot, less you come out with a detached frontal lobe.
How did the idea for the play come about? I had long been frustrated by the failure of the British theatrical scene to highlight issues such as incest, or cream tea. It fell to me to address both concepts in a single jammy, inbred tour de force. Due to runtime issues, however, both elements have been entirely excised from the play.
How are you feeling about bringing the show to London? This is the first time I’ve done a full run of a show outside of a festival. I’m producing the show as well as acting and having written it which in retrospect was a terrible idea. It’s worked out okay for now, but if I ever start thinking I could do that again it might be time to have me forcefully euthanised.
Has the production changed much since its run at the Edinburgh Festival? The show’s evolved a lot since last August which is good because then you can say “if you didn’t like it last year, it’s now totally different!” but then you can also say “if you liked it last year, good news! It’s exactly the same!” so there is no possible way for me to lose.
What can audiences expect from Cream Tea and Incest? The real question is what can they unexpect? No, that’s stupid. They can expect a fun, high energy romp flush with intrigue, murder and romance.
Cream Tea and Incest continues to play at The Hope Theatre until the 28th April. For more information visit: http://www.thehopetheatre.com/productions/cream-tea-incest/