Review: Margaret Thatcher Queen of Soho, Bristol Old Vic – ‘Feels like a hysterical party throughout’

Created by Jon Brittain and Matt Tedford, who also performs in the show, Margaret Thatcher: Queen of Soho comes to the Bristol Old Vic with a considerable pedigree. It already has five sell-out runs at the Edinburgh Fringe to its name, as well as a UK tour and a West End run.

Returning to the stage to mark a hundred years since Thatcher’s birth, the production was conceived in 2012, and Tedford has now been playing the Iron Lady for longer than she was in power.

The stage is empty, bar a hanging set of lit up ‘Maggie’ letters, reminiscent of the huge ‘Roxie’ ones from the eponymous Chicago number. After a booming introduction, Tedford strides purposefully onstage and into a rendition of YMCA, with the singular stresses and emphasises of Thatcher. He’s accompanied by two tiny-shorted men, Paul Heath and Michael Clarke, who similarly give it their all.

Then, things get underway, with Thatcher introducing herself to us. This is very much not a show where the audience are ignored observers, and the show has a quasi-pantomime, drag cabaret feel.

While the show is billed Margaret Thatcher: Queen of Soho, in which Thatcher stumbles into Soho on the eve of Section 28, we start before that seismic event, in order to give a sense of the discussion and events surrounding the bill.

The proceedings are peppered with exaggerated versions of the campaigners and politicians who were part of it, all played winningly by Heath and Clarke, with a sexually frustrated monologue from the former being particularly memorable.

Tedford often breaks the fourth wall to acknowledge our laughter or comment on the action, and a knowing Colston statue joke gets a big laugh and applause. There are some great lines (“being homosexual is a phase, they’ll grow out of it – like empathy”) and classic drag humour, such as “the gays’ backs were against the wall and they weren’t going to take it lying down”.

There’s also a good deal of music – which is great fun, and which the audience merrily sing along to. I especially enjoyed Thatcher’s rendition of Venus, by Shocking Blue, in which she wore a tank costume over her outfit.

As Thatcher, Tedford is excellent at encouraging the audience to dismiss any inhibitions and get involved, singing along or booing as needed.

A highlight of the second half is the appearance of Winston Churchill, appearing in painting form with a moving mouth. As is a recurring theme, his own experiences at public school and the army mean he has more of a passing interest in what’s going on. But there are some great jokes, including references to Yalta and his “fuckbunker”, and it’s probably the funniest sequence of the show, with Tedford’s corpsing heightening it further.

In terms of the denouement, it feels a little odd that Thatcher doesn’t get to Soho until almost the end, and the inevitable humanising revelation – although well-delivered – feels a little rushed.

Given that, at the start, Tedford has set up the counter-factual version of Thatcher as someone who has been taking the show on the road for some time, it strikes me that it would be fun to explore this imaginary version of her more.

And despite the excellent lighting – allegedly operated by Thatcher’s less favoured daughter Carol – the Old Vic’s huge stage feels slightly empty when there are just three people on it and no scenery. Perhaps it would’ve been fun to up the budget and add some more dancers or incorporate some multimedia elements via a screen.

All that said, however, this show is utterly saved by incredibly committed performances and a tremendous sense of fun that almost completely papers over any flaws, feeling instead like a hysterical party throughout.

 

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Margaret Thatcher Queen of Soho is at Bristol Old Vic on October 15-18 at 8pm, with an additional 4pm matinee show on Saturday. For ticket availability, check www.bristololdvic.org.uk. Follow @SohoThatcher for updates.

All photos: Mihaela Bodlovic

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