It’s a year since Gerry Linford told us the story of the unlikely love match between Tim and Julie in ‘The Peaceful Hour’, and now he has written a sequel that hits the Royal Court stage this month, focusing on another pair of love-birds from the previous story.
Carl and Ange (Lenny Wood and Angela Simms) are ready to tie the knot, and the gang are back in the same high-rise in Kirkby preparing for the big day tomorrow. Fear not if you didn’t see episode one, because The Peaceful Hour 2 is a standalone storyline, and in any case we are treated to a quickfire recap in graphic novel format at the beginning of the play.
Christopher McCourt’s skeletal set allows us to see through the walls of the flat to the terrace outside and the views beyond, and video backdrops from Jamie Jenkin give us a feel for the passing of the hours over the cityscape as the story pans out.
This is very much the stuff of sitcom-land, and all the characters are in some way or another recognisable as people we all know versions of, but all with their quirks and mannerisms drawn bolder and larger than life for comedic effect. And it works very well, with a fine ensemble cast having great fun both with the word play and the sight gags.
Julie Glover is wonderfully embarrassing as the sceptical but nonetheless enthusiastic mother-of-the-bride, lording it over the girls’ pamper night and attending to her feet on the coffee table (‘Do you have a cheese grater?’) while Ange frets over the fit of her meringue of a dress and Julie (Ellie Clayton) keeps the wine flowing and the music playing.
Fish out of water Tim, for whom the whole experience continues to be an exercise in social studies, is played this time by George Turner, who slips ably into the role and never overplays the poshness of his character. He has brought his video camera to the flat so that he can shoot scenes for posterity, but as things go on he captures some footage he hadn’t expected. Keep an eye on his camera bag, by the way, because there’s a not-so-subtle bit of business involving multiple cases of mistaken identity in the luggage department.
It is a big welcome back to Lenny Wood as Carl, who plays hapless and hopeless with huge skill, making maximum comic mileage with minimum dialogue.
However the standouts in the slapstick department are Michael Hawkins as the bewildered Tommy and Nathan McMullen as small-time gangster Frankie. Watching Hawkins is like seeing Stan Laurel and Buster Keaton rolled into one, whilst McMullen could almost have stepped out of a play by Martin McDonagh, as he brings a perfect blend of menace and mayhem to his somewhat unhinged wannabe drug baron.
Act I closes with one of the best almost literal cliffhangers you’re likely to see on stage, and the nifty bit of coiffure that goes on in the interval to bring us back after 20 minutes of freeze-frame is among the strongest visual jokes of the evening.
The promotional blurb promises ‘an 80s soundtrack to die for’, and while this might not entirely materialise, the show is indeed underpinned by snippets of vintage hits introduced by the disembodied voice of Pete Price, pumped out of the radio.
On the subject of sound, the actors are miked and their voices heavily amplified and the sound design could perhaps do with some fine tuning, because in some parts of the auditorium there is the disconcerting effect of all the voices coming from one place, beyond the confines of the stage and nowhere near the actors they belong to. This is a small issue however, in what is otherwise a well staged play.
Emma Bird directs with gusto, keeping things moving well and ramping up the pace for some of the more frantic scenes while never losing the thread of the action. The dialogue is full of the anticipated local references, and while some of them are a tad niche and lost on small pockets of the audience, the humour seems to land well throughout.
This might not be absolute vintage Linford, but it is sharp, witty and nicely performed by a tight and well-cast ensemble. You won’t quite be dancing in the aisles, but you can pretty much guarantee a lot of laughs and a fun night out, whether you are re-acquainting yourself with this group of characters or meeting them for the first time.
The Peaceful Hour 2 plays at the Royal Court until 7th March, and tickets are available here (including some that include a pre-show meal for the full dinner theatre experience).
Star Rating 3½ stars
The cast of Peaceful Hour 2 - Pictures by AB Photography 
Angela Simms and Lenny Wood as Ange and Carl
This review was originally written for publication by Good News Liverpool
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