THE Farndale Avenue Townswomen’s Guild drama group are renowned for their lack of stage prowess and their production of this sci-fi drama resulted in the predictable mayhem we have come to expect from these ladies of somewhat limited talent! Props went astray, lines were forgotten or muddled and we witnessed a series of wardrobe malfunctions, the absurdity of which all added to the hilarity of the evening.

The unfortunate indisposition of Hilda, due to play the romantic male lead, may have fazed the remainder of the company, but not the overbearing Mrs. Reece (Maggie Smith), who caused havoc for her fellow thespians whilst resourcefully ploughing her way through the piece as the erstwhile scientist Professor Einstein. The group had again called on the services of Gordon (Simon Trinder), this time to portray the Reverend Allsopp, and his boring delivery of both his scripted dialogue and his stage directions caused much merriment. Never one to shrink from publicising herself, Thelma (Hannah Walker), portraying the dual roles of teenagers Jimmy and Susan Allsopp, even attempted to sell photographs of herself during the interval whilst shy Felicity (Charlotte Gilliam) ineptly undertook the duties of the company’s props manager and timidly struggled with her roles of Mrs. Allsopp and Indesit the Martian. Meanwhile the calming effect that Norah (Sandra Miall) would have brought to the production as charlady Mrs. Tompkins and Roberto the Robot was lost when she inadvertently swallowed a bottle of valium tablets!

Liz Gorge’s direction certainly gave the audience plenty to laugh at!

Barrie Theobald