THEGAYUK

Category: Review

  • REVIEW | Hair Replacement Hub, Hair today, gone tomorrow, back again today

    OK let me start off by saying that this is a personal journey I took, and obviously, this may not be for everyone, but for anyone dealing with hair loss, this is a viable option.

    So, what am I talking about? I’ll say it, the dreaded Toupee word. However this is not the sort of thing that looks like an Ikea rug strapped to your head, this is a sophisticated hair replacement system. Now I’ve been dealing with thinning hair for best part of 8 years, and 3 years ago I decided to bite the bullet and shave my head down to grade zero.

    Initially, I tried my damn hardest to rock the shaved head look and on the surface, I tried to portray confidence and not giving a s**t about my rapidly reduced hairline. But secretly I hated it and loathed having to re-shave my head every few days so that my natural 12 hairs, on the top of my head, wouldn’t show through.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/BXn-hpkgprj/?hl=en&taken-by=phoenix0982

    I spoke to psychologist Emma Kenny about the psychological effect that hair loss can have on some people. She told me, Losing hair can be unbelievably traumatic and can make the individual feel unattractive and lead to low self-esteem. Hair is a hugely defining part of who we are and losing that aspect of our personality is painful. Being able to maintain and retain our image isn’t about vanity, it is about self-protection and helps to encourage positivity

    Obviously, some people really don’t care about hair loss and kudos to you for rocking that look friends, but to me, it was not a pleasant experience. When I was in my early to mid-20s I’d had every style and colour under the sun, and I loved the process of doing my hair in a morning before I went out. By 26 I noticed that my front hairline was starting to not be in the place it used to be. At first, I didn’t think anything of it, but as the years went on, I was having to spend longer in a morning styling my hair to hide the fact it was thinning. I even tried those hair fibres, but I was constantly worried that I would get caught in the rain and they would all come tumbling out.

    After shaving my head down to a grade zero I resigned myself to the idea that I wasn’t going to get it back, while the idea of a hair replacement system had been on the edge of my mind, I’d heard that these things could be horrendously expensive, with some systems setting one back nearly £2000, so I obviously pushed that idea to the back of my head, secretly hoping that maybe in 10 years, the price wouldn’t be that expensive.

    Every so often I would check some of the companies out, but still, the price made me think twice, but then I spotted a company near where I live that I hadn’t heard of before. I thought, maybe an independent company might be a little less expensive, especially if they didn’t have a bigger business name behind them…and so I met Tom Fish, owner of Hair Replacement Hub based in Telford. After initially emailing him about the price, I was pleasantly surprised to find out he only charged £450, with no hidden charges.

    So I spoke to him and immediately felt at ease, because he told me straight away he actually wore one of the systems himself. He was friendly, yet professional, and arranged a face to face meeting with me for a consultation. I wanted to ask him literally everything because this was still an investment to me. How could he charge so much less than some of the other companies? He was kind enough to come and visit me at home, and straight off I had to remind myself that he was himself wearing one of these systems, because I couldn’t clock it at all. It was only when I practically had my nose up against his head did I finally believe him.

    We spoke for over an hour, and I wanted to ask him about his experiences. He told me he’d started losing his hair at the young age of 21, and had paid nearly £2000 for one of these pieces, and he had felt this was way too expensive, so four years ago he started his own business. Determined that other guys who experience hair loss shouldn’t have to pay through the nose. During my own research, I had seen some of the pictures from other companies based around the UK that did kind of give me pause for thought. They looked a little too fake for my liking, almost like it was plonked on the head, and a little unnatural, and in some cases the colour was way off.

    Tom took his time to show me pictures of many of his clients, these systems all looked absolutely amazing and natural. Tom told me he used human hair in the systems and an “ultra-thin skin” base so that it looks as natural as possible. I kept scrolling through. Getting more and more comfortable in the decision I was making, and then I had a shock. A guy I recognised was among the pictures…I’d had no idea he even had one. I was suitably impressed. I asked why Tom worked alone, and his response was great. He wanted it to feel like a more personal approach, because he knew exactly the nerves one could feel walking into a salon when there are other people about, so he works from home, or will visit clients so that it’s just a one on one experience and having been through it all himself, he knows that for the people who choose to have one of these systems, the privacy he affords helps put people at ease.

    At the time of consultation, I still had a shaved head, so Tom asked that I let it grow out a bit first so he could get the best match and style for me.

    In the meantime, I contacted the guy I recognised, Hari and asked him about his experiences with Tom and Hair Replacement Hub. He told me,

    “Tom has literally changed my life, I’d spend about 90mins every morning styling my hair to hide my baldness and now it takes all of 10 minutes max! He’s given me hair confidence that I have always wanted. I know when I leave the house my hair is secure and unnoticeable which has lifted a huge weight off my shoulders after reading all the myths about hair systems and lastly, Tom inspired me not just from his hair systems but for Tom being Tom, To know that a man who actually wants to help people and has so much passion for his job is out there really restores your faith in humanity”.

    Fast forward 3 weeks, after letting my natural hair grow out a bit so that the system could be blended properly, I decided to visit Tom in Telford where he keeps a small home studio. He plopped me in the chair and turned on some music for me. He showed me the system, and it was an exact match to my hair colour, so we were already off to the promising start. I felt at ease as Tom styled the sides of my hair to help create a template for where the system would sit.

    He also trimmed my facial hair, and washed and practically massaged my head, before shaving the centre-right down so that the bond would adhere securely. Once the system was on I looked like a mad professor, but Tom being the professional that he is, expertly started to cut and shape the system to fit in with what I’d asked for. I wanted it longer than usual on top because I’ll be damned if I go three years without hair to then not whip it back and forth once I have it again.

    But this strange feeling came over me, I’d been so long without a full head of hair, I was kind of overcome with not only gratitude to Tom but a sense of relief that I was me again.  Another great service Tom provides besides the re-bonding and restyling of existing hair, which has to be done usually every 3-6 weeks, he also sells the products that are needed to keep the system in tip-top shape. The systems are fairly durable, and won’t need to be replaced often. Most last around 8 to 12 months depending on lifestyle, with even a very active person getting a solid 8 months out of them. But going back to Tom reduces the cost down, by £100 for the replacement

    I cannot express how friendly, and professional Tom is. He knows what he’s talking about, and he knows how it can feel to lose hair, so he wants every person who goes to him to feel 100% better about themselves, and I’ll tell you what, I certainly do.

    You can find the website for Hair Replacement hub here The Facebook page here and the Instagram page here.

    *Emma Kenny does not endorse this company or particular hair loss solution. She merely provided a psychological analysis of the effect hair loss can have on some people.

  • HEADPHONE REVIEW | Noise Cancelling Lindy NC60

    HEADPHONE REVIEW | Noise Cancelling Lindy NC60

    Introduction

    Noise cancelling headphones have become increasingly popular in recent years, as we look to envelop ourselves in our own world, cutting out the distraction of the world around us. It’s especially beneficial in open plan offices, packed tubes, homes near busy roads and well, maybe even a snoring partner. The only problem is that they tend to be very pricey, especially if you’re looking for solid construction and successful noise cancellation. The Lindy NC60’s tackle this on all three fronts – they are sub – £60.00, they look robust and they promise to cancel 85% of noise.

    Build And Quality

    Out of the box, the Lindy 60s are incredibly easy to use. Simply insert the batteries supplied, plug in the jack into your device, turn on the ‘ANC’ (active noise cancelling) function and away you go. There’s no pairing to do as they aren’t Bluetooth.

    They feel solid and have a rubberized texture to the cup and that signature red inner. The padding is thick and comfortable and should fit over the average ear and provide a good basic level of sound isolation, even before you turn on the ‘ANC’. They are padded with leather, not great if you’re a vegan or someone who doesn’t like animal products in everyday objects. In past experience, although not of these headphones, leather headphone pads can begin to degrade after a couple of years of use, especially if they get wet – from sweat or indeed using them in the bath and having wet hair.

    The cup has a couple of simple controls. A volume fader and the on switch for the noise cancellation, which as a blue LED to show whether it’s on or not.  On the other ear a standard wired headphone jack output – which attaches to your device.

    The bridge between the two ear cups is well padded and fits nicely on top of the head. The squeeze between the two cups is good and doesn’t feel uncomfortable.

    The noise cancellation feature is powered by two AAA batteries which are supplied, but not rechargeable, which is a huge let down for these headphones.

    The product also comes with a neat hard-body travel case and a couple of adapters.

    Sound

    When the ‘ANC’ is turned off the sound is plain and dull, feeling distant and to be frank muffled, however, once the noise cancellation feature is turned on, the sound comes alive. It’s certainly a lot more present as the background sounds are also filtered out. The headphone gives a good performance, that rivals much more expensive sets. In fact, once you’ve experienced Noise Cancelling headphones, it will be hard to go back to any other type of headphone.

    Is the noise cancelling affective on these headphones? Well, as they say, you get what you pay for. It’s not as deadening as other headphones we’ve tested, some offer different levels of cancellation, these just take out the lower end frequencies, which can mean you get bleed through of higher end noises.

    Verdict

    A good entry-level to noise cancellation that won’t break the bank.

     

    LOVE

    Price  – Sub £60 for Noise Cancellation is great

    Good bass response and bright sound

    Nicely packaged

    LOATHES

    Leather padding

    Batteries not rechargeable

    You can buy them from Lindy.co.uk or Amazon.com

    Tech Spec

    • Over-ear design with breathable protein leather ear pads
    • ANC reduces external low frequency noise by up to 85%
    • 40mm high output drivers with neodymium magnets
    • Impedance: 32Ω passive mode / 100Ω ANC mode
    • Sensitivity (1mW@1kHz ±3dB): Passive 93dB ANC 103dB
    • Nominal THD: Passive <0.1%@ 1kHz / ANC <0.5% @ 1kHz
    • Frequency response: 20Hz – 20kHz
    • Battery Life:
    • ANC mode only (no audio playback): 130 Hours
    • ANC mode with playback at 50% volume: 72 Hours
    • Adjustable volume
    • Powered by two AAA batteries
    • 3.5mm Stereo Jack Socket for detachable 3.5mm cable
    • Dimensions: 196 x 160 x 45mm
    • Weight: 203g (including 2 x AAA battery)

  • THEATRE REVIEW | Witness for the Prosecution, County Hall, London

    ★★★★★ | Witness for the Prosecution, County Hall, London

    REVIEW | Witness for the Prosecution

    Depending on your age and/or love of black and white films, you may know Witness for the Prosecution from the classic 1957 film with Charles Laughton and the divine Marlene Dietrich. No? Maybe you saw the recent BBC adaptation with Kim Cattrall as the murder victim, wealthy Emily French? No? Well, either way, you’re in for a treat. Even if you already know the deliciously cunning twists in this courtroom drama, you’re going to be knocked for six by the production.

    1950’s London and personable working class chap Leonard Vole is up before the courts, accused of bludgeoning to death a lonely (and rich) older woman in her St John’s Wood home. Things aren’t looking good for Leonard, especially as she’d just changed her will in his favour, and the gallows are looming. His only alibi is from his glamorous and frosty Teutonic wife, Romaine but will she vouch for him in court and help his cause or are things about to take a more complicated turn?

    Agatha Christie’s dramas are often wrongly seen as somewhat twee and cosy; the stuff of Sunday afternoons with a nice cup of tea. Here, you get to see Christie’s dark mind in all its sinister glory in a blood-splattered tale that is horrifying at times. OK so there’s the usual parade of thinly sketched and clichéd characters but that’s part of Christie’s charm too.

    One of the big draws of this production is the staging. Set in a courtroom, here we see it staged as authentically as is possible as we’re in…yes…a courtroom. Well, almost. It’s a debating chamber inside the sumptuous, disused, Art Deco County Hall (at the back of the London Eye, behind the aquarium) and it’s convincing. You could almost be in the public gallery watching the drama unfold. It’s high drama and more than a tad camp as there’s a soundscape of echoing footsteps, clanging doors and assorted gasps. It’s a thrill ride of chilling and thrilling twisty-turning fun.

    Forget The Mousetrap, Leave that for the West End tourists and head down to Westminster for a rare treat.

    Witness for the Prosecution plays at County Hall until 11th of March 2018

  • TV REVIEW Red Dwarf XII, Episode 3, Timewave

    For some strange reason, this week’s episode of Red Dwarf was a divisive one for the fans when it was pre-released on UKTV Play this week. It’s not really clear to see why, as the episode is simply a lot of fun.

    TV REVIEW Red Dwarf XII, Episode 3, Timewave

    The story starts when Rimmer decides to claim undiscovered planet with valuable substance, dreaming of untold riches once they find their way back to earth. When a timewave sends a 24th-century ship on a crash course towards that very same planet the Boys from the Dwarf decide to board the ship to warn the crew. The ship, though, is rather unusual – as the people at the top decided to make criticism illegal, so no-one can voice their opinions. Naturally, the Dwarfers soon find themselves in deep trouble.

    This episode features a hilarious guest turn from Johnny Vegas as a “ crit-cop” unhappy with his lot and an interesting Eddie Murphy impression from a very fed up Cat (Danny John-Jules). Stealing the show, though, for a second week in a row is Chris Barrie as a deliciously creepy alter-ego of Rimmer.

    After the darker themes of Siliconia this is a fun high camp romp of an episode that leads to interesting questions: how does criticism affect people? Does true positive criticism exist?

    Solid effort by all.

    Red Dwarf XII is tonight (26th October) 21.00 – Dave

  • THEATRE REVIEW | Cabaret – Leeds Grand Theatre and National Tour

    ★★★★ | On New Year’s Eve in 1938, American writer Clifford Bradshaw arrives in Berlin, and finds his way to the Kit Kat Club, a burlesque club hosted by the enigmatic Emcee, where the fluidity of sexuality, gender and sexual expression flow as freely as the gin. There he meets Sally Bowles, an excitable, if naïve, English woman, who performs at the club; and the two of them embark on an affair. But as the Nazi party rises to power, their friends both at the club and within the community find that their lifestyle places them all at risk as the nation starts to divide.

    THEATRE REVIEW | Cabaret - Leeds Grand Theatre and National Tour

    Starring Will Young and Louise Redknapp, this classic musical written by Kander and Ebb, needs very little introduction. Including the songs “Money Makes The World Go Around”, “Maybe This Time”, “Tomorrow Belongs To Me” and “Cabaret”, the show contrasts the bright lights of the carefree club with a story which has a surprisingly dark streak to it.

    The first act is awash with exuberant musical numbers, performed in a classic burlesque style; with the stage glowing in gold and orange lighting, and with an abundance of scantily clad and ridiculously attractive dancers, showing off a plethora of muscular pecs, torsos and biceps. The indulgence and pleasure of the Kit Kat Club then yields in the second act to a darker and more emotional story as the rise of fascism takes hold, impacting on the free-living community of the club.

    Will Young excels in his portrayal of Emcee; making his performance seem effortless and natural and injecting the role with just the right balance of humour, ambiguity and campness to be charismatic and alluring. His performance of the shows musical numbers is excellent, especially in opening the show with “Wilkomen” and in a haunting rendition of “I Don’t Care Much”. Louise Redknapp has her moments as Sally Bowles, and to her credit can belt out the show’s tunes, but her acting ability does not shine through and any stage presence that she may have gets lost amongst the charismatic cast; whereas Charles Hagerty provides solid and tuneful support in the role of Clifford Bradshaw

    The show is well staged, with a beautiful cast, thoughtful and interesting choreography and an impressive lighting design. The set is relatively stripped back giving the whole production a feel which is not too dissimilar to Kander and Ebb’s other musical, Chicago. It is beautiful to look at and Rufus Norris’ direction keeps the show moving along nicely.

    The revival of this production is timely, to say the least. With the recent resurgence in far-right political parties, the treatment of the gay community in Chechnya and with homophobic hate crimes reported to be on the rise, the show maintains a strong message about the impact of passivity and naivety to these issues on the gay community; a message which continues to resonate with audiences many years after the show was first performed.

    Cabaret is currently playing at Leeds Grand Theatre until Saturday 28th October 2017, before continuing on its national tour, calling at Milton Keynes, Manchester, Edinburgh, Bromely, Dublin and Brighton. Visit the tour’s website for details and tickets.

  • THEATRE REVIEW | Of Kith And Kin, Bush Theatre, London

    ★★★ | Of Kith And Kin, Bush Theatre, London

    After a run in Sheffield Theatres’ studio, gay surrogacy themed comedy-drama Of Kith and Kin hits London at The Bush Theatre. Oliver and Daniel are 21st-century gays married with good jobs and a flat. Now it’s time to take the natural next step, start a family with Oliver’s best girl-friend acting as surrogate.

    Chris Thompson’s play is a three-act drama and is mixed in tone and effectiveness. Starting out as a light sitcom with a twist, it morphs into a courtroom drama and ends with a more emotionally intelligent third act. There’s something distinctly dated about the first act in spite of the modern update. There’s all the classic sit-com ingredients: happy couple, monstrous mother-in-law descending, waters about to break and high camp. The difference, of course, being that there are two fathers and one mother. The humour is tired at times and whilst it has wryly amusing moments it’s never uproariously funny. Joanna Bacon does a good job as the brash mum from Woolwich but it still feels limp. Speaking of limp: James Lance has some unfortunate mannerisms. He’s playing a 46-year-old gay man with a mischievous sense of camp but to me, he didn’t quite nail this and it felt like an unfortunate and unintentional misfire. His swishy hips and flapping wrists didn’t convince me and it felt like a straight man’s imperfect attempt at portraying a slightly effeminate gay man which was grating rather than being entirely offensive.

    Act two moves on to the courtroom and again misses the mark. The key ingredient to a courtroom drama is a sense of tension but this felt slack in spite of strong performances from Donna Berlin as an improbably wisecracking judge. Finally, the third act is a more moving piece of drama and the play feels like it finds its feet but still, there’s a lot of holes and moments where the characters’ motivations feel unconvincing.

    On the positive side: James Lance is a nuanced performer (in spite of his poorly pitched 1970s style interpretation of a gay man’s mannerisms). Equally strong in supporting his work are Joshua Silver and Chetna Pandya. There’s also an interesting and well-thought set of themes to the play. Thompson looks at intergenerational differences in the expectations of his character. Oliver at 46, was kicked out of home for being gay and has difficult family relationships, never expecting that monogamy, marriage and children would be on the horizon. Conversely, Daniel who is over a decade younger has every expectation that these things are part of his agenda and in spite of all this progress, Priya’s teenage son doesn’t seem to be having an easy time of ‘having it all’. The confrontations of the final act are genuinely moving and raise interesting questions.

    It’s good to see a thought-provoking drama with some strong performances and emotive scenes. Whilst not excellent it has merits and is worth a look at the refurbished and plush Bush Theatre.

    Of Kith and Kin plays at the Bush Theatre until 25th November 2017

  • THEATRE REVIEW | Albion, Almeida Theatre, London

    ★★★★★ |  Albion, Almeida Theatre

    Mike Bartlett is riding on a high at the moment after the success of the second season of woman-scorned drama ‘Dr Foster’. As well as the much acclaimed TV drama he’s also a versatile and witty playwright with a string of theatre hits including the stellar “King Charles II” (what Prince Charlie did next), “Game” (the privileged classes shoot chavs for fun) and the epic “Earthquakes in London” (I think you can work that one out for yourself).

    His new play Albion is a sprawling three-hour epic concerning a successful businesswoman who uproots and plonks herself and her family down in a rural idyll with a dream of restoring an historic garden. Audrey is a bit of an uber bitch on one level. Suffering from profound grief following the death of her son in armed combat, she’s prickly and caustic, riding roughshod over her wet second husband and her disaffected daughter. Not to mention her guilt ridden middle class angst about the help, her strained relationship with her lesbian novelist best friend as well as her less than sympathetic views towards the local villagers who soon come to despise her. She’s also a strangely sympathetic character and is painfully real. It’s a tight script with echoes of Chekov (think disaffected people knowingly lurching towards disaster). Watching this feels a bit like settling down with a long but enthralling novel. It’s more than just a story. There’s a heavy layer of allegory and Bartlett turns his razor sharp gaze on to the people of England and their conflicted feelings towards their country.

    It’s a cracking play with multiple layers and is both thought provoking and emotionally involving without being preachy or patronising. The cast are universally strong, none more so than the fantastic Victoria Hamilton who plays Audrey. She’s been all over the TV of late as the put upon neighbour in Doctor Foster, The Queen Mum in Netfilx’s The Crown and the double crossing spy in the BBC2’s The Game. She’s magnetic and more than strong enough to carry this strong central role of a difficult but ultimately likeable woman.

    The stage set is absorbing and convincing. A huge tree dominates a long garden which the audience sit around in a horseshoe shape and it’s hard not to be taken in and feel like you’re out in an English country garden watching the human wild life fight it out.

    This is a rare treat. Go and see it while you can.

    Albion plays at the Almeida Theatre  24th of November 2017

  • THEATRE REVIEW | Venus In Fur, Theatre Royal Haymarket

    ★★★ | Venus In Fur, Theatre Royal Haymarket

    THEATRE REVIEW | Venus In Fur, Theatre Royal Haymarket

    A playwright/director bemoans the lack of female acting talent after a long day auditioning for the female lead in his new play. In walks Vanda, a ditzy and frenetic actress who’s turned up late but is determined that she’s going to audition for the part whether he wants her to or not.

    David Ives 2010 play is a twisting sexual and gender power play and a play within a play. The piece that Vonda is auditioning for is based around the 1870 novella of almost the same name (add an ‘s’ to the ‘fur’) by Leopold Von Sacher-Masoch. The clue is in the name: masochism was named after Sacher-Masoch and his desire to serve and be punished. The two characters read from the play and the roles they play both in reality and fantasy are in a state of constant flux. Thomas is a man who once stated that working in theatre was a great way to get laid but Vanda is more than prepared to take him on.

    It’s a slight play in some ways and is uneven at times with occasional absurd moments Whilst it has timely themes with the current Weinstein scandal, it’s not exactly searing. That doesn’t really matter here, though. It’s an OK play and is an entertaining 90 minutes but there’s an odd phenomena going on. The actress is far greater than the play. Nathalie Dormer (Margaery Tyrell in Game of Thrones) is totally hypnotising. Her co-star, David Oakes (currently on TV in Victoria), is more than adequate and is also easy on the eye but whatever your persuasion, I suspect you’re eyes will be drawn to every move, intonation and expression from the magnificent Nathalie Dormer. It’s sometimes hard to concentrate on anything but her central performance.

    Ignore the flimsiness of the play, although if S and M is your thing or you’ve ever contemplated this as a pastime then all the better. The main pleasure for most is the chance to watch such a virtuoso performance. Well worth seeing.

    Venue In Fur plays at the Theatre Royal Haymarket until 9th December 2018

  • FILM REVIEW | Double Date

    ★★★ | Double Date

    Two men get tricked by two very attractive women and it’s a ‘Double Date’ from hell!

    Jim (Danny Morgan) and Alex (Michael Socha) are typical 20-something men. All they want to do is drink and get laid, however, there’s one problem. Jim, fast approaching 30, is a virgin. Yes, he’s never gotten laid. He’s not all that bad. He’s nice and all, but good-looking Alex gets most of the attention and the girls. But when two women coincidentally seek out Jim by making an easy play for him, not all is what it seems. You see, these two women Lulu (Georgia Groome) and Kitty (Kelly Wenham), who happen to be sisters, are looking for a male virgin as a sacrificial lamb for their sick father (boy is he sick – and skeletal!), and Jim has stupidly posted his profile on a virgin dating site. It’s not too long before the girls lure the men into their home (a huge mansion) where they reveal their dark and sinister sides, and the boys will definitely not be getting laid on this double date!

    Double date is an amusing enough movie that doesn’t really take itself too seriously. The cast are all in good, scary and bloody form, and Morgan brings a bit of warmth and cuteness to his role (especially when he takes Kitty to his parents’ house for a brief birthday party). It’s all in good fun, and properly executed thanks to director Benjamin Barfoot. And while some of the fighting scenes forge on the unbelievable, at 90 minutes it’s not much of an investment in your time. And why yes, it’s the perfect double date movie!

  • THEATRE REVIEW | Hair, The Vaults, London

    ★★★ | Hair The Musical, The Vaults

    Hair, the original naked musical, is celebrating its 50th anniversary in a new production at The Vaults in London. Is the message that it sent in the hippie lovin’ 60s still relevant today? You betcha.

    When Hair was originally produced off-Broadway in New York City in 1967, its message of anti-establishment and free love, anti-war, and its display of full frontal nudity shocked audiences back then, leading to more publicity and packed houses. Now that we have Donald Trump in the most powerful office in the world, and with the UK ready to break off from the EU, and not to mention the political and socioeconomic changes happening around the world, Hair’s message is perhaps more relevant than ever before. But is it actually a good show?

    In the tiny, cosy and very hot theatre that is The Vaults under Waterloo station, 14 actors playing hippies sing and dance and sway their young lithe bodies all over the dirt floor that is the stage, and for one brief moment at the very end of the first half, they all get naked. And before and after in the second half, we are sung and spoken to by these youngsters as they tell their anti-war tales and burn their draft cards and the unlucky ones who are sent to fight in a war but come back with limbs, and emotions, gone.

    Yet all the favourite songs are here, songs that include ‘Aquarius,’ ‘Good Morning Starshine,’ and ‘Let the Sunshine In,’ songs that make this show famous, more so than the script. So if you’ve never actually seen Hair performed, go and see it now as this might be your last opportunity, but don’t expect to be wowed and awed in this production, though it might help if you take some stimulants to get you through the evening as this show is as mellow as can be.

    Hair plays at the Vaults Theatre, London until 3rd December 2017

  • TV REVIEW | Red Dwarf XII Siliconia

    You’d be forgiven for wondering why so many Sci-Fi shows have such high budgets when you see what Red Dwarf pulls off this week on a far lower one.

    The much announced and high awaited “Siliconia”, aka “The One Where Everyone is Kryten” has it all: questions about obedience, sides and morality, an epic fight scene and oh such feels! Yes, hidden behind his android mask and by own admission feeling rather ill because of it, Chris Barrie delivers a heartbreaking speech that will stick with you for quite some time.

    Meanwhile, Danny John-Jules gets the laughs this week with several zingers while Craig Charles makes a meal of Lister’s battle against his new android mind taking over.

    In other scenes, Robert Llewellyn shows off the humanised traits of the original Kryten very well as the android questions where his loyalties lay.
    An almost cinematic effort by Doug Naylor who by now is clearly a seasoned writer/director.

    Red Dwarf XII is tonight (19th October) 21.00 – Dave