The Silver Bell ★★★★ King's Head Theatre | Mar 29 - Apr 2, 2022


Love, loss and travel to parallel worlds! There's a lot packed into this 60 minutes, but it all works. You are bound to laugh and also be touched by Alan Flanagan's universal story. For science fiction fans there's buckyballs and alternative realities – and for the rest of us there's a good, old-fashioned love story, told with humour, nuanced with the compromises and banter that sustain a relationship. Mico (Alan Flanagan) is a physicist who meets an actor, James (Brendan O’Rourke). They fall in love and settle down but the "happily ever after" seems to have eluded them until Mico comes up with an idea. O'Rourke and Flanagan both create endearing and contrasting characters whose emotional attachment is absolutely believable. The chemistry between the two is natural and completely engages the audience, as does their story which is populated by lot of eccentric, but unseen, friends and family. Director, Dan Hutton, has done a fine job using the small space available and expanding it to encompass the time-travelling couple. This is a heartwarming tale with a clever twist so whether you're a lover of quirky characters or quarky stories, put The Silver Bell on your must-see list.

Rated: ★★★★

Reviewed by J.C.
Photo by Paul Phipps-Williams.

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