The Kingfisher

The Kingfisher
By William Douglas-Home. St Luke’s Theatre Society. Direction: Gary O’Neil. St Luke’s Church Hall, Tarragindi, Qld. 22-30 June 2018

St Luke’s Theatre pulled a rabbit out of the hat with their production of William Douglas-Home’s The Kingfisher. Thanks to a fine cast and good direction this gentle comedy, although dated, satisfied its target audience. A prolific playwright, Douglas-Home’s name was a fixture on West End billboards of the sixties and his upper-class drawing-room comedies became a staple of the community theatre circuit. Douglas-Home, whose elder brother Alec was the UK Prime Minister in the sixties, led a privileged life, studied at Eton and was accustomed to having maids and butlers. Like any good author, he wrote of what he knew, and this three-hander, which springs from 1977, finds him on familiar hallowed ground.

Best-selling author Sir Cecil reads the Times obituaries and discovers Reggi Townsend, the man who stole the love of his life fifty years ago, has died. With incredibly insensitivity that only the privileged enjoy, he arranges for the newly widowed Evelyn to take tea with him on the way back from the funeral. What ensues is a rekindling of the affair much to the chagrin of Sir Cecil’s butler Hawkins.

John Grey enthusiastically played Sir Cecil’s self-centred arrogance with comic bravado – querulous and petulant, but likeable as a man who was determined to right his wrongs of yesteryear. Mary Woodall, looking a million dollars in stiletto heels, brought warmth and affection to a woman who married the wrong man, whilst Brian Cannon as the old retainer Hawkins, bumbled, fumbled, cleverly disguising his intent to remain Cecil’s sole companion. The script is wordy and a couple of times the actors got lost, but their experience quickly had them on the right path again.

Una Hollingsworth’s set was more rustic than manor house, but Gary O’Neil’s direction, which included some very funny stage-business as Cecil and Evelyn replay their first kiss on a rug under the beech tree, ensured the play barrelled along to its satisfying conclusion.

Peter Pinne

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