By Nick Mabey. A second Celtic storm hit Southampton last night, swirling round The 1865. While Ciaran blew outside, inside the venue South-Wales thrashers Punk Rock Factory ripped it up in front of a sell-out crowd. When I interviewed lead singer Peej a couple of weeks ago, he gave...
Entertainment Reviews
Review – Only the Poets, The Joiners, Southampton, November 1 2023
By Chris Richards. It’s the last night of their UK tour and you can feel it. Their pride, excitement and elated exhaustion pours into the crowd and lifts them. Literally, we were all jumping like loons in the end. This is truly significant for me as I walked into...
Review: The Bodyguard, Mayflower Theatre, Southampton, 30 October 2023
By Catherine Collins As the curtain rises on a dark October evening, The Bodyguard opens on the Mayflower Theatre stage with a bang, before transporting the audience into a pop concert, with lights, dancing and the powerful voice of Emily Williams, who takes on the role made famous by...
Review: Peter Pan Goes Wrong, Mayflower Theatre, Southampton, October 25
By Graham Hiley Peter Pan Goes Wrong – Oh no it doesn’t! This Mischief production at the Mayflower was absolutely flawless – despite the many mistakes. Plenty in the packed theatre had clearly seen sister shows such as The Play that Goes Wrong or Magic Goes Wrong and...
Review – Spontaneous Potter Kidz – Theatre Royal Winchester, October 22
By Charlotte Ndupuechi As so many shows now ask people not to join in and singing along can mean you are asked to leave, this show was a refreshing change. Spontaneous Potter Kidz was like Harry Potter meets the old 90’s TV show Whose Line Is It Anyway? Four...
Review – 2:22 A Ghost Story, Mayflower Theatre, 17th October
By Joy Mckay 2.22 A Ghost Story was written by Danny Robbins and launched in the West End in 2021. It first came to my attention as it was heavily advertised on the escalators on The Tube in London with Tom Felton taking the lead role. The posters said...
Review 42nd Street, Mayflower Theatre, Southampton, October 3
By Sarah Groszewsi. 42nd Street is a timeless fairy tale that combines comedy, dance and retro glamour in a dazzling showbiz spectacular. Starring Samantha Womack, Les Dennis and Faye Tozer, the new production is directed by Jonathan Church. To describe 42nd Street as ‘all singing, all dancing’ might be...
Photos: Black Businesses, Art and Music Festival – Southampton
Photos by Charlie Hislop and Anita Foxall. More than 50 black-led organisations in Southampton and Hampshire-based organisations teamed up to create Southampton’s first ever Black Businesses, Art and Music Festival, held on Sunday 1st October, the first day of Black History Month. The idea was conceived by The United...
Review: Frantic Assembly – Metamorphosis, MAST Mayflower Studios, Southampton September 27
By Anita Foxall. “One morning, when Gregor Samsa woke from troubled dreams, he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect,” is the first line in Franz Kafka’s Metamorphosis. Frantic Assembly brought their fantastic stage adaptation (written by poet Lemn Sissay) to the MAST, and they took...
Review: Greatest Days, Mayflower Theatre, Southampton, September 26
By Joy McKay. Image: Alastair Muir. Greatest Days is the official Take That musical, premiering in 2017 under the name The Band. It has recently been made into a film and has been renamed in order to match. The Mayflower production stars Jennifer Ellison who originally came to fame...