Catch ‘The Goes Wrong Show: The Nativity!

Theatrical productions, just like films and TV shows, can be a hit-and-miss affair.

Thousands of pounds are invested with no guarantee of any kind of return on the money – it’s a high stakes gamble for those involved, although it can reap dividends if those involved find a winner.

So when they do, they tend to back the same kind of project again and again, and that perhaps explains why the Mischief Theatre company have continued to plough a similar furrow to their original smash-hit show, The Play That Goes Wrong.

Not that we’re complaining – their CV is full of outstanding successes, and those who have seen the team in action know how brilliantly structured each piece is, as well as how hilariously funny they are.

But if you’re not into being silly and daft, their work probably isn’t for you. As the team members state on their website: “At Mischief we are serious about silliness. We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to break free from the shackles of everyday life and escape with us to a world of carefully choreographed chaos, merry mishaps and timeless comedy. A place where you can escape realty and laugh until you cry. It is this belief that lies at the heart of our brand and underpins everything we do – we call it ridiculous escapism.”

The company is led by artistic director Henry Lewis and company director Jonathan Sayer, and was formed in 2008 by a group of students from The London Academy of Music & Dramatic Art (LAMDA). Many of their shows focus on the fictional Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society who, despite being ambitious and enthusiastic, are woefully inept when it comes to stagecraft of any kind.

The Play That Goes Wrong won Best New Comedy at the 2015 Laurence Olivier Awards, and has been followed by the likes of The Comedy About a Bank Robbery and Peter Pan Goes Wrong. The latter was turned into an hour-long film broadcast by BBC One in 2016; a year later, A Christmas Carol Goes Wrong, featuring appearances by Diana Rigg and Derek Jacobi, followed.

Clearly both were a success because The Goes Wrong Show, a six-part series, was commissioned and brightened up last Christmas no end.

A new run has been announced, but before that appears, we’re being treated to a festive special focusing on a production of The Nativity which, you guessed it, features the Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society who make a complete hash of it.

Written by and starring Mischief’s founding members (Lewis, Sayer, Henry Shields alongside Nancy Zamit, Charlie Russell, Bryony Corrigan, Greg Tannahill, Dave Hearn and Chris Leask), it focuses on what happens when a corporate sponsor agrees to fund the show after the BBC claim they want nothing to do with it.

The set, containing an ingenious pop-up book, looks impressive, but soon proves to be a danger to the cast and crew, Angel Gabriel develops a firework obsession and unnecessary nudity occurs as a result of a falling out between the actors playing a donkey.

And if you think that’s bad, wait until you see what happens to baby Jesus…

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