Oh Vicar, What a Lovely Pair

Having a knowledge of ‘Oh Vicar, What a Lovely Pair’, I was thoroughly excited to watch Lancing Repertory Players take on this slapstick comedy. 

The story follows a working-class family who decide, after their vase with savings for Roxanne’s wedding gets stolen, to steal from a wealthy household, who just so happens to be Roxanne’s fiancé’s family. Upon their attempt at stealing, they are interrupted by a variety of characters and different reasons, until finally both families meet officially and there is awkward tension flying around. Finally, ending with the Vicar returning the vases to respective families, until Kevin breaks the Woods' precious vase.

The show started and we were introduced to Bob and Maureen Woods (Simon Ancell and Liz Tobias). Simon's and Liz’s performances as the Woods family parents was nothing short of hilarious. Their comic timing was superb along with the characters’ constant bickering, making the audience believe they really were a true married couple! 

Thrown into the mix was their lazy son Kevin (Thomas Jennah), whose performance gave us additional humour to really cement the dysfunctional working-class family being presented to us. The final member of the Woods family was Roxanne Woods (Maggie Newman), whose performance tried to create more level-headedness in an already feisty household.

On the flip side, we were introduced to the Farquart-Jones family, Charles, Stephen, and Helen (Louis Howarth, Steven Bullimore, and Christina Tate). The Farquart-Jones family represented the upper-class household, but was still dysfunctional. Steven's and Christina's portrayals as the parents were nothing short of hilarious. Their comic timing between the two of them felt easy and made me, as an audience member, feel assured this was second nature to them.

Charles Farquart-Jones (Louis Howarth) was the man who’s sadly in love with Roxanne. Their chemistry worked perfectly and they complemented each other perfectly. A standout scene was the moment Roxanne and Charles were caught in a more compromising outfit by the Woods family and also the Farquart-Jones family. 

Finally, the cherry on top was Reverend Dorkins (Patrick Knowles), whose portrayal of the vicar was amazing. His portrayal of the vicar was done as an innocent man who doesn't realise what is going on, whether he’s mistaken as a fiancé or just trying to raise money in the jumble fair. His performance added more mayhem to an already manic show!

The technical side of the production was seamless and slick, lighting and sound complemented the staging perfectly. A most enjoyable afternoon was provided by this group. Thank you and congratulations to all involved - especially Director (Carol Clark) for a wonderful show.

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