The Fastest Clock In The Universe
Old Red Lion Theatre
Reviewed on Saturday 9th October 2013
It's hard to believe it's been twenty one years since the premiere of Philip Ridley's The Fastest Clock in the the Universe, mainly because the play has aged so well and concerns itself with the very current preoccupations of vanity, ageing and society's obsession with youth and beauty.
Captain Tock (Ian Houghton), the balding middle-aged antique seller, is engaged in a marriage of convenience with toy boy Cougar (played by Joshua Blake, pictured right), who makes quite an impact in the opening of the play in nothing more than some tighty whities and a pair of shades). So besotted is Cougar by youth that he not only clings on to his own at all costs but chases it in others, using a perpetual 19th birthday party ploy to ensnare teenage boys.
However, Cougar's plan to bag his latest young plaything, Foxtrot Darling (the charming Dylan Llewellyn), fails in spectacular fashion when the latter's pregnant fiancée makes a surprise appearance; the grisly consequences of which make up the play's thought-provoking entertainment.
The small cast do a wonderful job of delivering Ridley's sobering message, with Nancy Sullivan's Sherbert Gravel the standout performance of the evening. Never has the word 'babe' been delivered with such biting vitriol. Tom O'Brien's staging marks him out as an instinctive director with a very promising future ahead of him; he has brought out the piece's dark humour without cheapening the pathos.
Ultimately this fable-like story urges us to remember just how ugly the pursuit of beauty can be. For that alone, it's definitely worth a trip to Angel.
Reviewed by Jody Tranter
The Fastest Clock In The Universe runs at the Old Red Lion Theatre until Saturday 30th November 2013. Please visit www.oldredliontheatre.co.uk for further information and tickets.
Photo Credit: Darren Bell
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