Tag: Ladies Day

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More Things To Do in York and beyond. Hutch’s List No 36, from The York Press

Towering performances: Matthew Rutherford’s giant, Smog, and Jared More’s giant, Miff, in Riding Lights Theatre Company’s The Selfish Giant

A GIANT in a garden, Wendy turning piratical in a re-imagined Peter Pan, Alan Ayckbourn’s 92nd play and Wilko Johnson’s miraculous renaissance spark Charles Hutchinson’s attention in the week ahead.

Inspirational tale of love and generosity of the week: Riding Lights Theatre Company in The Selfish Giant, Friargate Theatre, Lower Friargate, York, today, 1.30pm and 4.30pm

STEP into the magical world of the Giant’s garden, a place full of music, beauty, bird song and stories in Jon Boustead’s stage adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s The Selfish Giant. The Giant, however, is cross when he returns to find children – children! – playing happily in his beautiful orchard, whereupon he erects a big wall to terminate the fun.

Once winter seizes the garden in its icy fingers, will summer ever return? Through storytelling, interactive games, live music and puppetry, York company Riding Lights presents a 50-minute play for family audiences. Box office: 01904 613000 or friargatetheatre.co.uk. Age recommendation: Three upwards.

Neverland revamped: York Theatre Royal Youth Theatre in Wendy & Peter Pan, York Theatre Royal, today, 2pm and 7pm

YORK Theatre Royal Youth Theatre returns to the Main House stage for the first time since 2019 for 46 performers, aged eight to 19, to present Ella Hickson’s feminist take on J M Barrie’s Peter Pan in Lydia Crosland and Sophie-Jade Howell’s large-scale production.

A quiet sadness permeates the Darling household, until the unexpected arrival of a mischievous young boy called Peter and a rather sassy fairy, Tink, whereupon Wendy leads the rebellious lost boys, takes on the terrifying Captain Hook, finds the key to her parents’ lost happiness and discovers the power of being brave and strong. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

York actress Frances Marshall in rehearsal for Alan Ayckbourn’s first courtroom drama, The Trial Of Romeo Oscar. Picture: Tony Bartholomew

Premiere of the week: Alan Ayckbourn’s The Trial Of Romeo Oscar, Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, until October 4

ALAN Ayckbourn’s 92nd play is his first courtroom drama, one set in the future, as he explores the question that artists have been asking for centuries: what makes us human?

In 2194, humanity is scattered around the solar system and day-to-day life on Earth looks very different. Preparations are underway for a landmark legal case. Romeo Oscar, a military issue android, is on trial for murder: the first non-human to be tried in a court of law. The evidence is polarising and selecting an impartial jury is proving a challenge. Box office: 01723 370541 or sjt.uk.com.

Silky: Hooking up at York Barbican tonight

Comedy bill of the week: Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club, featuring Silky and Dave Johns, The Basement, City Screen Picturehouse, York, tonight, 8pm

SILKY, Liverpudlian-in-exile and international act, is joined by Dave Johns, North Eastern stand-up,  scriptwriter and stage and screen actor, and  Jimmy Shirley, whose material addresses growing up in Liverpool in the 1990s, the absurdity of being a Scouser in Greece and the everyday things that annoy him every day.

Completing the line-up will be Gary Jennison, a surrealist force of nature who brings unscripted, unbridled chaos to dance-offs, game shows and observations with a twist while inviting the audience to steer his performance with suggestions and participation. Box office: https://lolcomedyclubs.co.ukor on the door from 7.30pm subject to availability. 

See the world more curiously in: Be Like Blippi, York Barbican, today, 1pm and 4pm

JOIN Blippi and Meekah for a one-of-a-kind interactive adventure that inspires children to move, play and explore like Blippi in a new show packed with high-energy music and surprises, featuring fan favourites The Excavator Song, Monster Truck, Dino Dance and Curious Like Me.  

Equipped with Blippi’s signature mix of play, learning, and exploration, Be Like Blippi invites you to break out your orange Blippi glasses and ignite your spark of curiosity. Please note, Blippi and Meekah will be played by professional stage performers. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.

Andrew O’Neill: Charting the history of punk through the comedy lens. Picture: Andrew O’Neill

When punk rock meets comedy: Andrew O’Neill, History Of Punk, Theatre@41, Monkgate, tonight, 8pm

FRESH from asking “How do we get out of this mess” in his Halfway To Edinburgh preview of his surreal, political show Escape at Theatre@41 on July 24, cult comedian Andrew O’Neill returns to York, switching from suggesting ways we can find our way out of disagreements to refracting punk rock through stand-up comedy.

In the wake of A History Of Heavy Metal, he delivers a full-volume love letter to punk, from The Stooges to Pussy Riot, Amebix to X-Ray Spex. “Punk’s not dead,” says O’Neill, who has appeared on Good Omens, Never Mind The Buzzcocks and Steve Coogan’s Saxondale. Box office: https://tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

The Illegal Eagles: Checking in at the Hotel California

Tribute gig of the week: The Illegal Eagles, Hotel California Tour, York Barbican, Sunday, 7.30pm

THE Illegal Eagles mark 30 years on the road in 2026 with their new Hotel California Tour.  Renowned for their vocal and guitar prowess and ability to re-create the legendary sound of the Eagles, the tribute act’s milestone itinerary features a full performance of the iconic Hotel California album, featuring Life In The Fast Lane, New Kid in Town and the unforgettable title track. Expect all the timeless Eagles greatest hits too. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.

Jeanette Hunter’s Pearl, Jackie Cox’s Jan, Nicky Clay’s Shelley and Gemma McDonald’s Linda in MARMiTE Theatre’s Ladies Day. Picture: Lucy Baines

Racing romp of the week: MARMiTE Theatre in Ladies Day, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, September 8 to 12, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Saturday matinee

LIFE is one long slog for four fish factory packers from Hull, Pearl, Jan, Shelley and Linda, but their fortunes could change when they head to Knavesmire on the day Royal Ascot came to York in 2005.

Factory hairnets make way for fascinators as the friends hit the racecourse for an unforgettable day out. Secrets are spilled, along with copious amounts of champagne, as friendships are tested to the limits in Martyn Hunter’s s production of Amanda Whittington’s comedy gem. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

Georgina Fairbanks and Johnson Willis in Jonathan Maitland’s Wilko: Love and Death and Rock’n’Roll. Picture: Nick Haeffner

Punk godfather of the week: Wilko: Love and Death and Rock’n’Roll , York Theatre Royal, September 10 to 12, 7.30pm and 2.30pm Saturday matinee   

WHEN Dr Feelgood co-founder and iconic guitarist Wilko Johnson faced a terminal cancer diagnosis in 2012, he was given only one year left to live. Declining medical intervention, Wilko chose to dedicate his remaining time to a meaningful farewell tour of the people and places that defined his life…only for an unexpected miracle to change the narrative entirely.

Jonathan Maitland’s Wilko: Love and Death and Rock’n’Roll examines the life of this punk-movement godfather, tracing a career that spanned Dr Feelgood, the Solid Senders, Ian Dury and The Blockheads and a late-career turn to acting in Game Of Thrones. Integrating live music and storytelling with Wilko’s own words, this show serves as a practical masterclass in living life to the fullest. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk. 

Movies In The Moonlight in Picturehouse Outdoor Cinema’s season at York Museum Gardens

Cinema event of the week: Picturehouse Outdoor Cinema, Movies In The Moonlight, York Museum Gardens, September 11 to 13, 6.30pm

CITY Screen Picturehouse moves outdoors for three evenings of open-air screenings, comprising Grease (PG) on September 11, The Shining (15) and Evolution Of Horror podcast introduction on September 12 and Jurassic Park (12A) on September 13. Screenings start at dusk or as soon as darkness falls.

Blankets, cushions and small picnic chairs are allowed. A limited number of deck chairs will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis; rain ponchos can bought at the event, should the need arise Guests are encouraged to take away waste for recycling where possible. Box office: picturehouses.com/outdoor-cinema/venue/york-museum-gardens.

Uh Oh, here comes Phil Wang’s moustache, “bristling with wisdom” at York Barbican

New moustache of the week: Phil Wang: Uh Oh, York Barbican, September 11, 7.30pm

PHILIP Nathaniel Wang Sin Goi is a Malaysian-British stand-up comedian, comedy writer and member of the sketch comedy group Daphne, who co-created the BBC Radio 4 series Daphne Sounds Expensive.

Now comes his new stand-up show, Uh Oh. In the words of Phil, “he’s older than ever before. He’s got a moustache now. It bristles with wisdom. His eyes shine with good humour. His shoulders groan under the weight of being the only cool millennial left. Everyone’s an idiot but him. Nice is out. Right is in. The vibe shift is real. Old Wang’s riding it.” Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.

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MARMiTE Theatre’s racecourse comedy-drama Ladies Day comes under starter’s orders at Theatre@41, Monkgate

Jeanette Hunter’s Pearl, left, Jackie Cox’s Jan, Nicki Clay’s Shelley and Gemma McDonald’s Linda in MARMiTE Theatre’s Ladies Day. Picture: Lucy Baines

YORK company MARMiTE Theatre’s second production, Amanda Whittington’s racecourse comedy-drama Ladies Day, comes under starter’s orders  next Tuesday.

Rehearsals are in the final furlong for artistic director and company founder Martyn Hunter’s production at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, from September 8 to 12.

Premiered at Hull Truck Theatre in June 2005, Ladies Day’s tale of friendship, sisterly support and, above all, love follows Hull fish-filleting factory packers Pearl, Jan, Shelley and Linda as they embark on Pearl’s “I’m not retiring” leaving-do.

Out go the hairnets, wellies and overalls, in come the outrageous hats, high heels and posh frocks, as the four friends set off for Ladies Day at Royal Ascot in the one-off summer when the racing festival relocated to York’s Knavesmire course in 2005.

Jackie Cox’s Jan in rehearsal for MARMiTE Theatre’s Ladies Day. Picture: Lucy Baines

“As the racing begins and the champagne flows, we find out there is more to the mundane fish-packing lives of our four friends than we first thought,” says Martyn. “As the day unfolds and the races go by, we see their loves, losses and insecurities laid bare, but if their luck holds they could still hit the jackpot and a lot more besides.”

Jeanette Hunter’s Pearl will be joined in MARMiTE Theatre’s cast by Jackie Cox’s Jan, Nicki Clay’s Shelley, Gemma McDonald’s Linda, Chris Gibson’s Joe, Stuart Rae’s Fred and Kevin, Robbie Howe’s Jim, Martyn Hunter’s Barry and Trevor Britain’s Patrick and Tony Christie (yes, the South Yorkshire crooner).

Ladies Day has since spawned Whittington’s plays Ladies Down Under and Ladies Unleashed, but MARMiTE Theatre picked her original play as the racing cert for a winning production. “It was on our radar for quite some time, and then our hand was forced by not being able to do our second Vicar Of Dibley production, The Second Coming, as the follow-up to our sold-out November 2025 debut,” says Martyn.

“Or, rather, we decided not to do it, because the story of Hugo and Alice setting out on married life and parenthood was heavily written around the Christmas Nativity and the birth of their fist child.

MARMiTE Theatre artistic director Martyn Hunter

“We had permission from Ian Gower to adapt the script, but we didn’t think a September run quite gelled with a Christmas setting. Ladies Day was always in my mind to do and we knew we wouldn’t have any problems staging it.”

Last performed at Theatre@41, Monkgate, by Robert Readman’s company Pick Me Up Theatre in 2019, Ladies Day appealed to Martyn on several grounds. “Firstly, Amanda Whittington is one of the attractions because people know of the quality of the plays she’s written. Then there are the local connections: the four women coming from Hull, and York Racecourse – everyone of a certain age remembers Royal Ascot coming to York and all the chaos and opportunities that went with it!

“The  play also fits MARMiTE Theatre’s ethos of presenting light comedies, not deep-thinking plays. Audiences can buy a ticket, have a great time, go home.”

Martyn suggests audiences and actors alike are drawn to Whittington’s characters being ‘real people’. “Just to read it, it’s such a funny play that people can identify with, but then when you start rehearsing it, you realise they’re not superficial characters. They’re deeper than that, which is true to life. Everyone has a story to tell,” he says.

Off to the races: Jackie Cox’s Jan, left, Nicki Clay’s Shelley, Gemma McDonald’s Linda and Jeanette Hunter’s Pearl, front, in MARMiTE Theatre’s Ladies Day. Picture: Lucy Baines

York pantomime luminary Martin Barrass memorably played all the male characters in the Hull Truck premiere, but Martyn made the decision to divide the parts this time. “I’m glad we’ve spread them across five actors, who bring different qualities to the characters,” he says.

“I’ve looked at clips of amateur companies doing the show with one actor doing all the male roles, and often the actor looks ludicrous when playing the jockey. We have a guy called Trevor Britain in that role, who looks the part. He’s been in his local panto for years and has done a couple of shows with Escrick Monday Players. He’s the right stature, and even before opening his mouth, you think, ‘yeah, he could be a jockey’.”

Martyn handpicked Jeanette Hunter for Pearl, Jackie Cox for Jan, Nicki Clay for Shelley and Rowntree Players pantomime regular Gemma McDonald for Linda from “being in shows with them or seeing them on stage”. “I knew they were highly competent to take on their roles, and they all have that fun, easy-going character about them, which makes them great to work with,” he says.

“Rehearsing through July and August has been enlightening and enjoyable, but at the same a nightmare,” he jokes. “Can you imagine spending every Sunday with four loud, giggly ladies?! But at the end of the day, you will see the sacrifice has been worthwhile!

Jackie Cox’s Jan and Jeanette Hunter in fish-filleting garb in rehearsal for MARMiTE Theatre’s Ladies Day. Picture: Lucy Baines

“They’re all good for a laugh and nobody takes themselves too seriously, which is a big part of making rehearsals work. They’re good company to be with and it’s just a bonus that they’re all such talented actresses.”

Martyn has turned his hand to the set design too, one that will feature a racecourse mural, painted specially for the production by Lucy Baines. “It will all come together on Monday afternoon in time for Tuesday,” he says.

Looking ahead, a second coming for The Vicar Of Dibley: The Second Coming  could yet be on the cards for MARMITE Theatre. “I’m still very hopeful that we can do it in November 2027 at Theatre@41,” says Martyn. Watch this space.

MARMiTE Theatre in Ladies Day, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, September 8 to 12, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Saturday matinee. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

Did you know?

MARTYN and Jeanette Hunter are no strangers to enjoying Ladies Day, having attended Ladies Day at Ripon Racecourse for the past decade.

MARMiTE Theatre’s poster for Ladies Day at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York

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What’s On in Ryedale, York and beyond. Hutch’s List No. 36, from Gazette & Herald

Jared More, left, and Matthew Rutherford in Riding Lights Theatre Company’s The Selfish Giant

A GIANT in a  garden, Wendy turning piratical in a re-imagined Peter Pan,  a slapstick take on The Three Musketeers and an enlightening Helmsley exhibition are among Charles Hutchinson’s highlights in the week ahead.

Inspirational tale of love and generosity of the week: Riding Lights Theatre Company in The Selfish Giant, Friargate Theatre, Lower Friargate, York, until Saturday, 1.30pm and 4.30pm

STEP into the magical world of the Giant’s garden, a place full of music, beauty, bird song and stories in Jon Boustead’s stage adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s The Selfish Giant. The Giant, however, is cross when he returns to find children – children! – playing happily in his beautiful orchard, whereupon he erects a big wall to put a stop to all the fun.

Once winter seizes the garden in its icy fingers, will summer ever return? Through storytelling, interactive games, live music and puppetry, York company Riding Lights presents a 50-minute play for family audiences. Box office: 01904 613000 or friargatetheatre.co.uk. Age recommendation: Three upwards.

York Theatre Royal Youth Theatre’s cast in Wendy & Peter Pan. Picture: James Drury

Neverland revamped: York Theatre Royal Youth Theatre in Wendy & Peter Pan, York Theatre Royal, tomorrow to Saturday, 7pm plus 2pm Saturday matinee

YORK Theatre Royal Youth Theatre returns to the Main House stage for the first time since 2019 for 46 performers, aged eight to 19, to present Ella Hickson’s feminist take on J M Barrie’s Peter Pan in Lydia Crosland and Sophie-Jade Howell’s large-scale production.

A quiet sadness permeates the Darling household, until the unexpected arrival of a mischievous young boy called Peter and a rather sassy fairy, Tink, whereupon Wendy leads the rebellious lost boys, takes on the terrifying Captain Hook, finds the key to her parents’ lost happiness and discovers the power of being brave and strong. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

The poster for Romantics, Mystics and Revolutionaries

Spoken-word gig of the week: Say Owt presents Romantics, Mystics and Revolutionaries by Pete the Temp, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, tomorrow, 7.30pm

POET, author and comic Pete the Temp’s Romantics, Mystics and Revolutionaries is a spoken-word show about rebellion, resistance and wild imagination. The 1800s’ Romantic movement began as a rebellion: against empire, industry and the mechanisation of the soul. Yorkshire became the epicentre of its rebellion. ​

Tomorrow’s storytelling stage show fuses scholarship with music, comedy and poetry in a spellbinding history of riot, repression and psychedelic experimentation. As we face this age of despair, find out what we can learn from past dreams of freedom and renewal. Bangladeshi-Geordie spoken-word poet and creative practitioner Tahmina Ali supports with her explorations of identity, belonging, motherhood, mental health and cultural inheritance, viewed through a distinctly northern lens. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

Our Star Theatre Company: Whirlwind of confusion, mayhem and comical mishaps in The Three Musketeers

Slapstick silliness of the week: Our Star Theatre Company in The Three Musketeers, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, Friday, 7.30pm  

OUR Star Theatre Company’s re-telling of The Three Musketeers is packed with humour, audience participation and energetically silly turns as a small troupe of performers gears up for its debut performance of Alexandre Dumas’s story.

However, what starts as a simple theatrical endeavour soon unravels into a whirlwind of confusion, mayhem and comical mishaps. From forgotten lines to chaotic set changes, the actors become entangled in a series of blunders. Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.

York actress Frances Marshall in rehearsal for Alan Ayckbourn’s The Trial Of Romeo Oscar. Picture: Tony Bartholomew

Premiere of the week: Alan Ayckbourn’s The Trial Of Romeo Oscar, Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, Friday to October 4

ALAN Ayckbourn’s 92nd play is his first courtroom drama, one set in the future, as he explores the question that artists have been asking for centuries: what makes us human?

In 2194, humanity is scattered around the solar system and day-to-day life on Earth looks very different. Preparations are underway for a landmark legal case. Romeo Oscar, a military issue android, is on trial for murder: the first non-human to be tried in a court of law. The evidence is polarising and selecting an impartial jury is proving a challenge. Box office: 01723 370541 or sjt.uk.com.

See the world more curiously in: Be Like Blippi, York Barbican, Saturday, 1pm and 4pm

JOIN Blippi and Meekah for a one-of-a-kind interactive adventure that inspires children to move, play and explore like Blippi in a new show packed with high-energy music and surprises, featuring fan favourites The Excavator Song, Monster Truck, Dino Dance and Curious Like Me.  

Equipped with Blippi’s signature mix of play, learning, and exploration, Be Like Blippi invites you to break out your orange Blippi glasses and ignite your spark of curiosity. Please note, Blippi and Meekah will be played by professional stage performers. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.

The Illegal Eagles: Checking into the Hotel California at York Barbican

Tribute gig of the week: The Illegal Eagles, Hotel California Tour, York Barbican, Sunday, 7.30pm

THE Illegal Eagles mark 30 years on the road in 2026 with their new Hotel California Tour.  Renowned for their vocal and guitar prowess and ability to re-create the legendary sound of the Eagles, the tribute act’s milestone itinerary features a full performance of the iconic Hotel California album, featuring Life In The Fast Lane, New Kid in Town and the unforgettable title track. Expect all the timeless Eagles greatest hits too. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.

Robert Dutton & Andrew Moodie: Launching Into The Light exhibition at Helmsley Arts Centre

Exhibition of the week: Robert Dutton & Andrew Moodie, Into The Light, Helmsley Arts Centre, September 8 to 30

THIS exhibition presents landscapes that evoke a strong affinity for different reasons. Dramatic mountainous terrain, breathtaking moorland landscapes and coastal sea sand and communities all have their place.

“We hope that Into the Light may extend beyond the artwork to suggest a sense of optimism, moving from darkness to light, in a sometimes troubled world,” say artists Robert Dutton and Andrew Moodie. “The paintings are presented both to inspire you and also to bring you that same sense of awe and wonder with nature that we felt as we painted them, enjoying the unique quality of the light that led us to each location.”

Jeanette Hunter’s Pearl, left, Jackie Cox’s Jan, Nicki Clay’s Shelley and Gemma McDonald’s Linda in MARMiTE Theatre’s Ladies Day. Picture: Lucy Baines

Racing romp of the week: MARMiTE Theatre in Ladies Day, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, September 8 to 12, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Saturday matinee

LIFE is one long slog for four fish factory packers from Hull, Pearl, Jan, Shelley and Linda, but their fortunes could change when they head to Knavesmire on the day Royal Ascot came to York in 2005.

Factory hairnets make way for fascinators as the friends hit the racecourse for an unforgettable day out. Secrets are spilled, along with copious amounts of champagne, as their friendships are tested to the limits in Martyn Hunter’s s production of Amanda Whittington’s comedy gem. Box office: https://tickets.41monkgate.co.uk/

Louisa Ashdown in the rehearsal room for Hephaestus Theatre’s Richard iii Redux

Introducing: Hephaestus Theatre in Richard iii Redux, The Basement, City Screen Playhouse, York, September 10, 7.30pm

UNIVERSITY of York theatre graduates Eleanor Doig (producer) and Louisa Ashdown (director and performer) introduce new York company Hephaestus Theatre in Kaite O’Reilly and Phillip Zarrilli’s dark comedy Richard iii Redux.

The company’s mission is to tell disabled stories and put disabled and neuro-diverse actors on stage and behind the scenes, this time with Ashdown playing The Actor opposite Georgina Way’s Presenter (on film) in a journey to find who the real Richard iii was while exploring the challenges of being a disabled actor. Box office: eventbrite.co.uk.

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Under starter’s orders: MARMiTE Theatre to stage racing comedy Ladies Day at Theatre@41, Monkgate, from Sept 8 to 12

MARMiTE Theatre’s show announcement poster for Ladies Day at Theatre@41, Monkgate

YORK company MARMiTE Theatre will begin rehearsals on June 21 for Ladies Day, Amanda Whittington’s “racecourse comedy-drama to warm the cockles of your heart”.

Directed again by company founder Martyn Hunter, the company’s second production will run at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, from September 8 to 12.

Premiered at Hull Truck Theatre in June 2005, Ladies Day’s tale of friendship, sisterly support and, above all, love follows Hull fish-filleting factory packers Pearl, Jan, Shelley and Linda as they embark on Pearl’s “I’m not retiring” leaving-do.

Nicki Clay’s Geraldine Granger in MARMiTE Theatre’s debut production, The Vicar Of Dibley, last November

Out go the hairnets, wellies and overalls, in come the outrageous hats, high heels and posh frocks, as the four friends set off for Ladies Day at Royal Ascot in the one-off summer when the racing festival relocated to York’s Knavesmire course in 2005.

“As the racing begins and the champagne flows, we find out there is more to the mundane fish-packing lives of our four friends than we first thought,” says Martyn. “As the day unfolds and the races go by, we see their loves, losses and insecurities laid bare, but if their luck holds they could still hit the jackpot and a lot more besides.”

Ladies Day playwright Amanda Whittington

Jeanette Hunter’s Pearl will be joined in MARMiTE Theatre’s cast by Jackie Cox’s Jan, Nicki Clay’s Shelley, Gemma McDonald’s Linda, Chris Gibson’s Joe, Stuart Rae’s Fred and Kevin, Robbie Howe’s Jim, Martyn Hunter’s Barry and Trevor Britain’s Patrick and Tony Christie.

“MARMiTE Theatre had hoped to follow up November 2025’s sell-out debut production of The Vicar Of Dibley with a return to the village of Dibley this year to continue the  story of Hugo and Alice as they set out on married life & parenthood,” says Martyn. 

“However, due to unforeseen difficulties, we’ve had to postpone a second visit but are keen to return to Dibley in 2027.” Watch this space.

Tickets for Ladies Day cost £15 at tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

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Amanda Whittington celebrates friendship, growing older and living for today in third Hull Truck instalment Ladies Unleashed

Amanda Whittington: Ladies Unleashed playwright

HULL Truck Theatre’s second half of their 50th anniversary season unleashes Ladies Unleashed, the third instalment of Amanda Whittington’s trilogy.

In the wake of Hull Truck hits Ladies Day – the one set at York Racecourse to coincide with Royal Ascot switching to Knavesmire in 2005 – and Ladies Down Under two years later, now the Nottingham playwright celebrates friendship, growing older and living for today.

Directed by artistic director Mark Babych, Ladies Unleashed reunites four friends, Hull fish factory workers Jan, Pearl, Linda and Shelley in 2022 on the peaceful, magical retreat of the Holy Island of Lindisfarne in a story of secrets and mysteries, reunions and an imminent wedding, twists and surprises.

“Seventeen years! It’s absolutely frightening! I was checking when I started, thinking it must be ten years ago, but in fact it was 2005, and the world has changed so much since then,” says Amanda.

“I can’t believe it’s so long since we first went to Ladies Day with the fish factory foursome, and to Australia in Ladies Down Under a few years later. Creating these stories for Hull Truck was a magical time and the audience response was unforgettable. 

“Since then, the two Ladies plays have been a firm favourite on the amateur circuit across the UK. Barely a month goes by without a production somewhere in the country, keeping the play alive since its original production. It’s such a gift as a writer to know what affection your characters are held in.”

Pearl (Fenella Norman), Jan (Allison Saxton) and Linda (Sara Beharrell) have not seen Shelley (Hull-born Gemma Oaten) for years, but when she suddenly turns up, Linda’s plans for a weekend of quiet contemplation (“not a hen party,” she says) take a different turn as tensions rise with the tide.

“I’ve always set the plays in the present day, so now Pearl is in her early 70s; Jan, mid-60s; Linda and Shelley around 40,” says Amanda.

Gemma Oaten in rehearsal for her role as Shelley in Ladies Unleashed at Hull Truck Theatre

“A whole generation has gone by, and I was quite reluctant to get back on the bike, after doing Ladies Day as a one-off, but then I did another one two years later, and so the characters are still very much alive in village halls and community centres.

“I thought of all the people who’ve been in Ladies Day or seen it, and there were discussions with Nick Hern Books, the publishers, who’ve been really instrumental in keeping the Ladies alive all these years.

“Then I started talking to artistic director Mark Babych about new ideas for the 50th anniversary, and a new Ladies play was floated. I was curious to think about where they were a generation later, but presenting it as a stand-alone play, looking at getting older and the benefits and challenges of doing that, when you don’t normally do that with characters from earlier plays.”

The third instalment was commissioned pre-pandemic. “There was a first draft, then the lockdowns, and when I came back to it, there’d been more changes,” says Amanda.

“I write about where we are, where we’ve been, so it’s partly a play about time. Writing dialogue for those characters again, I found it was like they’d never been away. They were just back in the room.

“It felt instantly right, and then it was about putting it in a dramatic framework that felt contemporary.”

After a day at the York Races in Ladies Day and a trip to Australia in Ladies Down Under, Amanda now sends Pearl Jan, Linda and Shelley to Lindisfarne and lets the island work its spell on them, like in Shakespeare’s The Tempest and Tim Firth’s Neville’s Island.

“That was exactly the thought behind it, to get them to a place they can’t get off, a place that had so much history and texture, and, like Hull, had a great fishing industry, giving it that connection with the past.”

Ladies Unleashed cast members in the rehearsal room: from left, Martha Godber, Nell Baker, Fenella Norman, Sara Beharrell,, Allison Saxton and Gemma Oaten

Here was the cue for two new additions to the Whittington ranks of women, young fish workers Mabel (played by Martha Godber) and Daisy (Nell Baker), whose friendship from Lindisfarne’s past stirs anew as the island itself becomes restless, the sky darkens, the air chills, and the winds of change blow skeletons from closets. Whereupon past, present and future collide.

“I thought, what happens if the past comes alive and the young women they might have been awaken, working on the island a century earlier?” says Amanda. “This was the chance to bring magic realism into the play, and that’s been a lovely thing to open up.”

Women’s stories are at the heart of Amanda’s plays. “That’s very much what I’m about as a writer. It felt very natural for me to do that, and right from the beginning of my career that’s the voice I’ve always spoken in. Even now it’s still not common but it’s a characteristic of my work,” she says.

“John Godber’s plays, Arthur Miller’s plays, are never talked about as ‘male plays’, but women’s plays stand out because there just aren’t as many. Ladies Unleashed is about a female world, and as the women of Holy Island’s past come alive, it shows how women’s lives have changed so radically and yet how some things have still not changed.

“Thankfully, there are lots of untold stories from history about women that are being told now, but they’re not stories just for women; they’re stories for everyone.”

Ladies Unleashed plays out in the age of #MeToo and a rising focus on women’s rights. “It’s released something in the last few years that’s not about men versus women, or oppressing women, particularly as there are damaged men as well,” says Amanda. “That’s the spirit of my work, with women giving their perspective on a century of change, and in 2022 it’s really welcomed by audiences.”

What are the ladies unleashing, Amanda? “What holds them together is that core of friendship, and the key to that is their work as fish factory workers, but they all have something they need to be released from, barriers to break through, and part of that comes down to how that differs in the different generations and how that’s changed,” she says.

Hull Truck Theatre in Ladies Unleashed, September 29 to October 22. Last performance, 7.30pm. Box office: 01482 323638 or hulltruck.co.uk.

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