Express & Star

Hot stuff! The Full Monty heads to Birmingham Hippodrome

From Dinnerlaides to Coronation Street, Andrew Dunn has starred in some of the most popular TV shows on our screens. The Leeds-born actor has also featured on The Bill, Holby City, Heartbeat and Bremner, Bird and Fortune.

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Leave your hat on – Andrew (far left) is in The Full Monty next month. Below, Gary Lucy

But he’ll be swapping the small screen to tread the boards when he appears in The Full Monty at Birmingham Hippodrome from November 5-10.

The original film was one of the most acclaimed British movies of all time and the stage play remains phenomenally successful.

It was called ‘chuffing brilliant’ by the Daily Mail and is the story of six out-of-work, impoverished steelworkers from Sheffield with nothing to lose. They take the world by storm in a show that has become one of the world’s most successful.

The play is based on the smash hit film and was adapted for the stage by Oscar-winning writer Simon Beaufoy. It’s a hilarious and heartfelt production that has received standing ovations every night and won the prestigious UK Theatre Award.

The new production features Gary Lucy (Hollyoaks) who has made the part of Gaz his own, with an all-star cast of Andrew, Louis Emerick (Brookside, Coronation Street), Joe Gill (Emmerdale), Kai Owen (Torchwood) and James Redmond (Casualty, Hollyoaks) with songs by Donna Summer, Hot Chocolate and Tom Jones.

Andrew says the cast have as much fun on the stage as they audience do in the stalls.

Unexpected

“It’s great fun to do. It’s like being in a rock band. This is the third tour I’ve done.

“We’ve been very lucky in terms of cast and crew. Both tours were great and everyone got on very well. It’s very well because it’s a long tour. It’s from August to May but thankfully we all get on. We’ve been very lucky that we look after each other.”

The show has sold out big theatres around the country and Andrew reckons nine out of 10 people get to their feet at the end of each show. And yet the show surprised many and was an unexpected hit.

“It took us by surprise originally. Even Simon Boothryoyd, the writer, was surprised. It portrays bleak times in the 80s and it’s all been transferred to the theatre. It’s a feel-good show. You know, you think about it, the themes are child care and unemployment, so I don’t know what people think they’re coming to see. But people know the story now because the play is virtually the same as the film and they know they’ll have a great night out.”

The Full Monty is a deeply funny play and audiences will instantly recognise jokes that they’ve loved from the big screen. Andrew says the play attracts people who don’t often go to the theatre because they know what to expect.

“It’s very dark, thematically, because it’s about the destruction of industry in the community. There used to be one big industry in towns and cities, but that shut down and it was collapse and chaos. Men who were unemployed were losing their status and the play is also about relationships husbands and wives, between blokes. The main story is how can Gary get to keep in touch with his child? It’s northern humour, it’s working class, and that shines through; it allows the whole production to go forward. In dark times, people move on.”

Andrew has only fond memories of some of his most memorable roles, including Dinnerlaides from 1998-2000 with Victoria Wood, Julie Walters, Shobna Gulati and Maxine Peake.

“It’s been 20 years but the show is constantly repeated on Gold. I get stopped by so many people who want to know about it. In some ways, that stems from the same sort of humour. And there were others, like Brassed Off and Pride and Billy Elliott. They were all set in the ‘80s in working class communities where people were triumphant against disaster. They’re all a bit like a Rocky movie – but funny.”

The Full Monty attracts plenty of families – as well as ladies who are out for a good time. And audiences can get a little fruity when the characters start to strip.

“It’s usually pandemonium. We do attract a lot of ladies who’ve been drinking a lot. When we’re about to lose our clothes, we’re all just thinking ‘oh God, here it comes’. The strip goes down a storm. We stand there with nothing on and hope the curtain comes down quickly. We’re supposed to have lights coming from behind but sometimes the lights don’t work and then all hell breaks loose.”

Andrew has spent much of his life performing in TV but is a huge fan of the stage. He says playing theatres is a privilege and he enjoys every show.

“The live performance before an audience is great and you can’t beat that instant reaction. It’s a buzz, innit. You’re in front of 3,000 people and they’re roaring with laughter. TV is totally different because you retake and retake and have no control over the end result. That’s down to director and editor.”

As well as Dinnerladies, Andrew enjoyed working in Bremner Bird & Fortune, where he played Alastair Campbell.

“I had to audition because at the time I slightly resembled Alastair Campbell. The show all depended what had happened the week before. I’d just turn up and Rory Bremner would tell me what we were doing. A lot of it was improvised. Later on, Rory tended to write more so it was a bit more scripted. It was always last minute, depending what they’d done before.”

One of the joys of The Full Monty is that Andrew gets to revisit towns he’s played before, including Birmingham. “I love the Hippodrome. We did the Full Monty on the last tour and it sold out and there was a great reaction. I’ve done the New Alex too, a few times and we used to film in the old Pebble Mill studios in the 1980s. Birmingham has changed a lot and is still changing. It’s a really vibrant city and I’m looking forward to being back.”

l For more entertainment news and reviews see The Ticket in your Shropshire Star every Friday.