A SAMUEL FRENCH, LTD. TITLE

Great Britain

Full-Length Play, Drama  /  8w, 17m

Richard Bean

Richard Bean's fast and furious new play is an anarchic and foul-mouthed satire about the press, the police and the political establishment.

Great Britain

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  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    8w, 17m
  • Audience
    Target Audience
    Adult, Teen (Age 14 - 18)

Details

Summary

Paige Britain is the ambitious, morally-bankrupt young news editor of The Free Press, a tabloid newspaper locked in a never-ending battle for more readers.

But when Paige starts living as a self described ‘super hero with special powers’, after discovering the benefits of illegal phone tapping, she risks putting herself and the many people around her into murky, morally dubious and dangerous territory.

This large-scale ensemble comedy successfully lampoons the recent past, making current events a timeless source of satire. 


Keywords

Press and their roles at the start of Act 1 

Paige – late 20s or early 30s, journalist 
Garth – 40s O’Leary business executive 
Wilson – late 50s Editor 
Jackie – 30s ex page 7 girl, now picture editor 
Tina – 20s celebrity desk 
Larry – 50s crime desk 
Wallace – tv column, How Big’s Your Telly! 
Maddy – 40s royal correspondent 
Marcus – 30s investigative reporter (Black British) 
Gemma – 30s foreign desk 
Howard – 50s senior journalist 
Billy Kayne – The Legend 68 sports desk 
Paschal O’Leary – 60s owner 

Civilians
Boris Tudor – 70s 
Clarissa Kingston-Mills – 60s 
Stella Stone – 20s celebrity 
Wendy Klinkard – 30s in a wheelchair 
Police Doyle Davidson – 30s 
Mac MacManaman – 50s 
Suliman (Sully) Kassam – 40s of Pakistani ethnicity 
DI Cram – 30s 

Politicians 
Jonathan Whey – 40s 
St. John – 30s

Diane Bendall – 40s 

Police, waiters, other press as required.

  • Time Period Contemporary
  • Features Contemporary Costumes / Street Clothes
  • Cautions
    • Mild Adult Themes

Media

‘Astounding. The most detailed stage satire I have ever seen.’  **** Financial Times 
‘Blessedly funny. Bracing topicality. Richard Bean doesn’t do things by halves.’ **** The Guardian
‘Laughter-making on an industrial scale. The NT is on exhilarating and exemplary form.’ **** The Independent
‘It’s a loud, rambunctious, fast-moving and foul-mouthed entertainment packed with lurid characters and vulgar jokes. And if one joke doesn’t work, another will be along two seconds later. Never has corruption been this funny’ **** The Telegraph

Licensing & Materials

  • Minimum Fee: £70 per performance plus VAT when applicable.

Scripts

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Authors

Richard Bean

Richard Bean
Richard Bean was born in Hull in 1956. After school, he worked in a bread plant before leaving to study Social Psychology at Loughborough University. Richard has worked as a psychologist and a stand-up comedian. His work for the stage includes: Young Marx (which has just ...
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