Me & My Girl

Me & My Girl is a real “feel good factor” show and this one certainly lived up to its reputation.

The show calls for a very strong male lead who is able to carry the show, be a good singer, dancer and actor, well the Lamproom MTC need have no worries when they cast Lee Caddick in the role of Bill Snibson, he was perfect. Lee had a near perfect accent and was great in every other aspect of this part plus the audience loved him.

Playing opposite Lee as his girlfriend, Sally, was Holly Lees and here again Holly was perfect in this part. I particularly enjoyed her duet with society stalwart Bill Moss who played Sir Jasper Tring, “Take it on the Chin”. It was great and was able to show off not only Holly’s talents but also those of Bill who didn’t have to do anything except use his facial expressions much to the delight of the audience. Of course this was not the only number Sally had; she also had the title duet with Bill, “Me & My Girl” during which they performed a great tap routine as well as singing.

Once Bill is introduced to the family it is of course Lady Jacqueline who made a bee-line for him. Lady Jacqueline was played to perfection by Lisa Kendall who not only acted this out with great gusto she also threw herself into the songs, none more so then her duet with Bill, “You Would if you Could” where they both threw themselves around the stage on and off the settee to show off her quest to gain Bill’s attention and of course share the money he has just inherited.

Lady Jacqueline has of course a fiancé in the guise of Gerald Bolingbroke played to the full by David Cooper who was the typical yahoo Henry upper class snob who never seems to get it quite right, Gerald and Jacqueline have a great duet, “Thinking of no-one but Me” during which she tells Gerald exactly what she expects from him.

Trying to keep the family together is the Duchess of Dene who wants only what is best for the family no matter what sacrifices they have to make, in this part Wendy Prew certainly made no bones about what was wanted and she got it, whether it be from the other family members or from Sir John Tremayne played by Jonathan Cannon. Both Jonathan and Wendy managed to get the most out of these parts without ever going over the top and I do wonder how much practise Jonathan had to do to find the perfect drunk for this part!

There are some great smaller character parts in this piece and it was good to see them given to actors who could do something with them, I am talking of course about Parchester which was played by Peter Mayson, I love his song “The Family Solicitor” during which Peter brought the comedic side of his talents to the fore. Ryan Howe made an excellent butler, Charles, and managed to keep the stiff upper lip all through the entire show and Jo Smith was the perfect busy body neighbour Mrs Brown who we all know and love. Mention must also be made of Pat Demetriou as Lady Battersby who was always trying to keep her wayward husband, Lord Battersby played by Andy McGeorge in check; together they too brought some good humour to the show.   

Martin Lees, Adele Gough and Robert Cooper must be very proud of their's and the cast’s efforts to bring this show to life.

Many congratulations to all involved.

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