By Peter Maddern
Men Behaving Badly was an English sit-com of the 1990s which,, as its name suggests, focused on boofhead males doing their stuff in a rejection or ignorance of the zeitgeist of its and subsequent times towards more caring metrosexuals. This is a world for which boobs, booze and burbs are entirely badges of honour, not just part of the daily toil. Based on four episodes from that long running series, our prolific director Matt Byrne has spared little subtlety in his show of the same name.
In this, he is more than aided by Rohan Watt’s mostly soaked Gary and Brendan Cooney’s brilliantly brainless Tony. Cheryl Douglas and Georgia Stockham as Deborah and Dorothy respectively suffer their male friends’ various inanities with a grace and patience that the current PC warriors would scorn without remorse. That they are often given the best lines keeps revulsion levels to a manageable state. The use by the boys of straying off script to the other’s detriment and the breaking down of the fourth wall with the audience keeps a connection going that keeps at bay wondering whether sitting at home on the couch would not have been a better way to visit these knuckleheads.
It’s a long way from the wit of Peter Shaver’s Lettice and Lovage (currently also on in the Little Theatre) but screen writer Simon Nye also knows his characters and his audience and Matt Byrne of course has the skills to make it all engaging and good fun.
Kryztoff Rating 3K
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