The Eric franchise has reached the milestone of its 25th year of productions and to celebrate the fact Eric’s alter ego David Graham asked the show’s many devotees to vote on which two of the twice yearly bonanzas should be repeated to commemorate the event.
Strictly Eric came second in the poll and has duly returned after first seeing the light of day in 2017. Before the action started, Graham took to the stage to explain that the series’ hero had a different marital situation eight years ago to that of 2024 and put the play in context as part of Eric’s developing story and also to say that the majority of the original cast had been able to return.
Roughly based around the hit BBC programme Strictly Come Dancing, Strictly Eric is set in the Blackpool Tower Ballroom of 1969 which is the venue for the World Ballroom Dancing Championship. Arthur Strictly – a bumptious official from the local town hall – who has little or no knowledge of competitive dancing but is keen to use his military precision to make the event run like clockwork – and appear on television.
Arthur has recruited Eric to help with proceedings and Bren is moonlighting from Dinnerladies to provide the catering alongside the culinary-challenged Gordon.
The main competitors are the German couple Herr Kohle (pronounced curler for comic effect) with the forename Willi and his partner Claudia and their British counterparts Stan and Shirley Matthews.
A misunderstanding between Eric and Arthur leads the former to believe that the voting is rigged towards an English victory and he hastily gathers £56 7s 6d so that Gordon can place a bet on an England victory.
Rehearsals soon reveal that the German pairing is much more proficient and the bet looks far from a safe one. Will the attempts to nobble the German pairing succeed? And how will a growing relationship between Stan and Claudia affect the competition? All will be revealed.
Attending an Eric event is like meeting with old friends. Many members of the audience are regulars but those who are dipping their toes into the mayhem are also welcomed with open and loving arms.
And that is exactly what the Eric experience truly is. It wraps itself around the audience member like an old comfort blanket. Cast members return on a regular basis – as do some of the jokes – and all is accompanied by some familiar hits from the 1960s performed by what is always an excellent band.
The audience is always highly-entertained and it is gratifying to see that the cast members are enjoying themselves too. This relationship between actors and onlookers has been built up over the years and small mistakes are readily forgiven as the unfolding scene is revealed as Entertainment with a capital E.
There is always a caveat for the potential patron for an Eric show. If you are looking for an evening of sophisticated humour then you may be disappointed. If you want to sit still in your seat and not join in the toe-tapping delight that eventually has everyone on their feet, then you may do better to stay at home.
However, if you enjoy laugh out loud moments with lots of verbal and visual humour interspersed with some memorable musical interludes, then Eric is tailor-made for you.
The series is celebrating its Silver Anniversary. Isn’t it about time YOU joined the party?
Strictly Eric continues until August 3rd and has a running time of approximately 2 hours 30 minutes including interval. For ticket information contact tickets@newvictheatre.org.uk or 01782 717 962
