Today’s Joanna Page: What the Butler Saw

What the Butler Saw

Today’s Joanna Page is What the Butler Saw, the last play of Joe Orton, which our Joanna appeared in in 2005. And which I didn’t see, of course, so can’t tell you if it was any good, but here’s a review from The Stage. At some point, I’ll get on to watching some more of JP’s movies and do some proper reviews, but work’s a bit busy at the moment.

In What the Butler Saw, Dr Prentice, a psychiatrist, attempts to seduce his prospective secretary, Geraldine Barclay (JP). But his wife is being seduced and blackmailed by Nicholas Beckett. She therefore promises Nicholas the post as secretary, which adds further confusion, including Nicholas and Geraldine dressing as the opposite sex. Dr Prentice’s clinic is then faced by a government inspection. The inspection, led by Dr Rance, reveals the chaos in the clinic.

As you might have guessed, it’s a farce.

The pic above is just about the only pic of JP from the production that I could find (any others gratefully received). So as a special treat, here’s a truly delightful picture of two Ali Larters in Heroes to round it all off nicely.

Ali Larter in Heroes

Author

  • Rob Buckley

    I’m Rob Buckley, a journalist who writes for UK media magazines that most people have never heard of although you might have heard me on the podcast Lockdown Land or Radio 5 Live’s Saturday Edition or Afternoon Edition. I’ve edited Dreamwatch, Sprocket and Cambridge Film Festival Daily; been technical editor for TV producers magazine Televisual; reviewed films for the short-lived newspaper Cambridge Insider; written features for the even shorter-lived newspaper Soho Independent; and was regularly sarcastic about television on the blink-and-you-missed-it “web site for urban hedonists” The Tribe. Since going freelance, I've contributed to the likes of Broadcast, Total Content + Media, Action TV, Off The Telly, Action Network, TV Scoop and The Custard TV.

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