Review: Grumpy Old Women Live 2, Chin Up Britain
Published on Wednesday 21st April, 2.49pm, Written by Amy Whiting
The Grumpy Old Women are back on the West End stage in all their grumpy glory.
After the success of the first national tour in 2006, original cast member and co-writer Jenny Eclair has been joined by two new grumps, Wendi Peters and Susie Blake. For those who didn’t watch the BBC Two series or see the first tour, it’s basically three middle-aged women moaning about daily life and inviting others to join their Grumpy Team.
Susie Blake, Jenny Eclair and Wendi Peters are the Grumpy Old Women
The stage is laid out like a kitsch 1950s home, complete with patchwork bunting, arm chair and kitchen table. The show opens with the three women marching around the stage dressed in military blazers ready to fight for their right to remain grumpy, to a cheering and whooping audience.
The first half focuses on topical subjects, mainly the recession and the upcoming general election. Naturally they see the need for a female Prime Minister who understands their real needs e.g. for shops to have more flattering light in their changing rooms. Margaret from The Apprentice was their ideal candidate because she has good old-fashioned morals and wears smartly ironed shirts with starched collars. Brilliant.
According to the grumps, one of the most important ways to cut spending in a recession is to reduce the amount you spend on clothes. The three women proceeded to strut their stuff in homemade outfits made from bath mats, dusters and tea towels while using the kitchen table as the catwalk. It might not have been inspiring fashion, but it had the audience in stitches. It was also meant to encourage women to beat their Marks & Spencer Per Una addictions; out with the tweed skirt and in with the feather duster top, ladies.
Roughly halfway through the second half the inevitable menopause jokes kick in. Unsurprisingly insomnia, hot flushes and HRT gags soon followed. Surprisingly, they were very amusing and well written.
There was a vast range of content that followed, from a woman’s prerogative to eat huge amounts of chocolate then moan about the size of her waist, to her ability to return an M&S cardy without a receipt. Thankfully the script wasn’t awash with anti-men jokes – they just highlighted their flaws, such as loud snoring.
Don’t expect any amazing special affects, instead the set is pretty basic but put to good use. More importantly, music is played to really get the crowd going. A nostalgic medley of 80s songs at the end had the audience singing along and remembering their pre-grumpy days.
All three actresses were truly believable GOW, relating to the troubles you face when hitting middle-age. The vast majority of the audience were female and middle-aged, making them want to be a part of the GOW group too.
You don’t have to be middle-aged to enjoy this show, you just have to have the ability to giggle. So chin up Britain – or more specifically, grumpy, middle-aged women.
Grumpy Old Women theatre breaks are available to book now.
