Open Auditions on Sunday 31st August 2.00pm – 5.00pm, Sunday 7th September 2.00pm – 5.pm and Wednesday 10th September at 7.30pm all in the theatre lounge.
Performances: 12th – 17th January 2026
Imagine an evening where Charles Dickens, after a few drinks in an alehouse, passed all his stories on to the team of Monty Python who then, after a few more drinks, persuaded Ben Elton and Richard Curtis to write a new script as a homage to the great man himself. That is not what happened, but it paints a useful picture.
Mark Evans’ stage play is an hilarious , chaotic caper, featuring dastardly villains, preposterous names, pulse-quickening romances, heart-rending death scenes, and definitely, probably, hopefully a happy ending.
Based on the award-winning BBC Radio 4 series, the play is narrated by Sir Philip Bin, the renowned Victorian entrepreneur and philanthropist, and required the earnest efforts of five men and three women to recreate the twenty or so characters that tell the story of his life.
There will be much doubling, silliness and jolly japes, so come with a sense of fun, enthusiasm, and a general willingness to have a go.
The cast of six male and three female characters are as follows:
Sir Philip Bin
Pip Bin
Pippa Bin
Poppy Bin / Ripely Fecund
Thomas Bin / Bakewell Havertwitch / Broadly Fecund
Agnes Bin / Flora Dies-Early
Harry Biscuit / Mr Parsimonious
Gently Benevolent
The Hardthrashers
There is a lot of doubling up of characters in this play; therefore a range of playing ages will be required from new-born to senior citizen, from schoolboy to headteacher.
Please get in touch with the director, Mark Bodicoat, if you want to find out more, (07710299277 or bodicoat@aol.com ); or just turn up at the auditions and see what happens.
If you want to pre-read some of the scenes, scripts are available to borrow for a brief time from the theatre office most Monday-Saturday mornings between 9.30 am and 12.30pm
Auditions are open to all, but if you become involved in a production you will be asked to join the Market Harborough Drama Society.