Fatherland ★★★ Hampstead Theatre | Oct 31 - Nov 29, 2025


Nancy Farino’s debut play Fatherland tells the story of Joy, a young woman persuaded by her impulsive father, who curiously shares the name of George Orwell's protagonist in 1984, to join him on a quixotic journey of discovery. However, it is a trip that in many ways is also a retreat for both of them from their current reality. Heartwarming and humorous, the play explores a parent and child relationship in which the parent has never truly grown up. Winston is a perennial optimist with a string of failed relationships who has recently reinvented himself as a self-styled life coach and who now finds himself in trouble. Coincidentally, daughter Joy is facing the collapse of both her relationship and her career when Winston convinces her to join him aboard a refurbished school bus and to trace their family roots in Ireland. Their odyssey is filled with humour and affection, offering sharp insights as Joy learns to understand and accept the engaging, irrepressible, and often irresponsible man who shaped her life. The play’s greatest strengths are its vividly drawn characters and the authenticity of its dialogue. The comic and emotion-filled banter between Joy and Winston is neatly counterpointed with Winston’s confrontational, cat-and-mouse exchanges with his lawyer. However, some sections feel overwrought and unnecessarily literary, particularly Joy’s dream sequences and soliloquies. At times, the perspective the audience is meant to develop on the father–daughter relationship also seems somewhat unfocused, perhaps due to insufficient distance from the subjects. This is especially evident when compared with the clearer and more straightforward presentation of the interactions between Winston and his lawyer. All of the performances are strong, however. Jason Thorpe brings immense charm and charisma to the character of the eccentric parent, while writer and performer Nancy Farino is convincing as the reluctant Joy, once again drawn into her father’s wild ventures. Shona Babayemi delivers a nicely nuanced and sympathetic portrayal as Winston’s legal advisor, and despite the staging challenges of setting much of the action on a bus, director Tessa Walker successfully creates a vivid sense of movement and intimacy. In the end, Fatherland is an engaging, funny, and tender exploration of the bonds between parents and children, reminding us that growing up is often a shared and unfinished journey.

Rated: ★★★

Reviewed by J.C.
Photo by Pamela Raith

When, Where, Getting there:
Map & Location: Eton Ave, London NW3 3EU, UK

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