Milton Keynes Theatre of Comedy

Getting closer to curtain up!

2009-06-15T07:46:00.000-07:00

Time marches ever forward... we're running the whole set of shows from this week onward and they're looking good!

If you haven't already you should get booking your tickets! Visit the MKTOC website at www.mktoc.co.uk soon.

Rehearsals under way...

2009-03-25T02:42:00.000-07:00

We've just had our second "proper" rehearsal, and all three tales have been blocked. I like to get that out of the way early - it means you can concentrate on the little actions and interactions that bring out the comedy! There are two ways you can stage a show - with complicated set pieces and without! Both "Moorstones Manor" and "Eric Olthwaite" have choreographed set pieces in them; I've gone the other way a bit. This means that I could also concentrate on having a steak dinner downstairs in the Bull restaurant whilst Dave P was blocking "Eric Olthwaite" upstairs!

So who got the better deal?!?

Ripping Yarns - the adventure begins!

2009-03-11T09:34:00.000-07:00

Saturday 7 March saw the first read-through of our new production - Michael Palin and Terry Jones' "Ripping Yarns", adapted for stage by nailing some planks to it and adding a hinge to the Y. With an ensemble cast of sixteen, we are attempting three gripping tales - "Murder at Moorstones Manor", "Across the Andes by Frog" and "The Testing of Eric Olthwaite".

This classic BBC series is reckoned to be one of the strongest comedies of it's time - and judging by the enthusiasm and delivery at the reading, MKTOC are set to more than do it justice!

We'll continue to blog as we progress - prepare yourself for murder, shovels and Anuraie!

Meet the cast: Steve Clark

2008-07-04T07:17:00.000-07:00

10 questions to help you get to know the cast of MKTOC's production of The Ladykilllers 8 - 12 July '08 (box office: 0845 2410967).

Steve Clark plays Major Courtney, originally played by Cecil Parker.

Q: What’s your favourite comedy?
A: Anything with Rowan Atkinson (except Thin Blue Line!)

Q: Do you have a favourite comedy catch phrase?
A: ''He's hopeless ... you might as well ask the cat'' (Basil Fawlty of Manuel)

Q: What’s your favourite part of putting on a performance?
A: The social element of rehearsing with pals and then the (hopefully favourable) reaction from the audience!

Q: Do you have a preferred medium to enjoy comedy?
A: TV

Q: What’s your proudest on-stage moment?
A: I am particularly proud of panto performances – where the immediate audience reaction can be amazing when you get it right!

Q: What’s the most embarrassing moment you’ve had on stage?
A: Realising that another across had fluffed his lines in a scene in a play at the Edinburgh fringe and totally skipped most of the script and indeed the whole point of me being on the stage for the play! The performance never recovered and was a surreal experience lasting about a quarter of the time it should have!!

Q: Who’s your favourite character in The Ladykillers?
A: The Professor

Q: If you weren’t doing this what would you be doing?
A: I’d probably be roped into some other all consuming dramatic activity!

Q: What’s your dream role?
A: I’d quite fancy playing Basil Fawlty!

Q: Who’s your greatest inspiration?
A: Monty Python

MKTOC's exclusive rights to adapt Palin and Jones' Ripping Yarns

2008-06-25T06:10:00.000-07:00

MKTOC are delighted to announce that we have secured the exclusive rights from Michael Palin and Terry Jones to adapt Ripping Yarns (Originally BBC TV 1977) to the stage.

MKTOC will produce the first ever stage production of Ripping Yarns in July 2009 at the Chrysalis Theatre, Camphill, Milton Keynes.

You can read more about the original televised series by these ex-Pythons on Wikipedia.

We will be selecting and adapting three of the nice episodes. More details to follow...

More information about the adaptations (which will involve live stage action combined with pre-recorded film sequences), details of the production team and dates and opportunities for auditions and casting will be posted later this summer.

If you are interested in being involved in this show in any capacity with the production side or as a cast member or would consider sponsoring this very exciting and (by its nature) high profile adaptation, please contact David by phone on 0845 2410967 or email.

Show dates and times: Tuesday 7th to Saturday 11th July 2009

The Bolivian Sunshine Dogs at Waterside Festival

2008-06-25T05:02:00.000-07:00

There was a great turnout at this years Waterside Festival, the sun shone and a good time was had by all - especially the Bolivian Sunshine Dogs who kicked off their summer of fun with a hugely entertaining set...

Catch them next at:
29 June Olney Recreation Ground
05 July Newport Pagnell Carnival, 5th July
02 Aug The Robin Hood, Clifton Reynes (performing with Kenny Ball and his jazzmen)

Meet the cast: Keith Hargreaves

2008-06-23T05:59:00.000-07:00

10 questions to help you get to know the cast of MKTOC's production of The Ladykilllers 8 - 12 July '08 (box office: 0845 2410967).

Keith Hargreaves is the director.

Q: What’s your favourite comedy?
A: Pheonix nights

Q: Do you have a favourite comedy catch phrase?
A: ‘You put it where?’

Q: What’s you’re favourite part of putting on a performance?
A: The performance

Q: Do you have a preferred medium for enjoy comedy?
A: radio

Q: What’s your proudest on-stage moment?
A: An ad lib that saved an entire scene from being missed

Q: What’s the most embarrassing moment you’ve had on stage?
A: An ad lib that saved an entire scene from being missed

Q: Who’s your favourite character in The Ladykillers?
A: Lettice

Q: If you weren’t doing this what would you be doing?
A: Drinking

Q: What’s your dream role?
A: Charlie (in Charlie’s Angels not Willy Wonka)

Q: Who’s your greatest inspiration?
A: Leonard Fenton (Dr Legg in Eastenders)

MKTOC's The Ladykillers - it's nearly here!

2008-06-20T09:52:00.000-07:00

Another week and another rehearsal, it's really coming together now. The scripts are gone, some props are in and it's all running smoothly, well mostly...

8-12 July, The Chrysalis Theatre, Camphill MK
Tickets available from the box office (0845 2410967)

Book now!

Meet the cast: Chris Tennant

2008-06-19T02:25:00.000-07:00

10 questions to help you get to know the cast of MKTOC's production of The Ladykilllers 8 - 12 July '08 (box office: 0845 2410967).

Chris Tennant plays Harry Robinson, originally played by Peter Sellers.

Q: What’s your favourite comedy
A: Blackadder…any of them

Q: Do you have a favourite comedy catch phrase
A: Erm..no

Q: What’s you’re favourite part of putting on a performance
A: Becoming someone else..and entertaining people

Q: Do you have a preferred medium for enjoy comedy:
A: TV

Q: What’s your proudest on-stage moment
A: Seymour in little shop of horrors

Q: What’s the most embarrassing moment you’ve had on stage
A: At the beginning of my song in a slice of Saturday night…the stage began to rotate…(at the wrong time!)….whooops!

Q: Who’s your favourite character in The Ladykillers?
A: mine

Q: If you weren’t doing this what would you be doing
A: Watching TV and being bored!

Q: What’s your dream role?
A: Not sure!

Q: Who’s your greatest inspiration?
A: I get inspired by all the great people I get to work with week in and week out…they make me want to raise my game

Meet the cast: David Lovesy

2008-06-17T08:30:00.000-07:00

10 questions to help you get to know the cast of MKTOC's production of The Ladykilllers 8 - 12 July '08 (box office: 0845 2410967).

David Lovesy plays One-Round Lawson, originally played by Danny Green.

Q: What’s your favourite comedy?
A: Nothing TOO clever… “Three Amigos”, “There’s Something About Mary”, “Young Frankenstein”, “The Princess Bride”. On the flipside, anything since 2003 that ends in “Movie” should be taken behind the shed and shot.

Q: Do you have a favourite comedy catch phrase?
A: No massive favourite, but I overuse “Share and Enjoy” from the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy!

Q: What’s you’re favourite part of putting on a performance?
A: The bit where I didn’t have to learn any lines! Improvised banter with the audience will always be my first love.

Q: Do you have a preferred medium for enjoying comedy?
A: Radio is best, then stand-up, then TV, and finally film. Too many compromises in film

Q: What’s your proudest on-stage moment?
A: Can’t really think of a specific – when I get the audience to give a big laugh at an improvised comedy night – I can’t get prouder than that.

Q: What’s the most embarrassing moment you’ve had on stage?
A: I was Santa Claus at the age of ten in a school play. Girl bounds on stage, leaps on my lap, chair slides fully backwards and falls off stage. I end up on my back with my just-visible black-booted feet waggling over the top of the stage.

Q: Who’s your favourite character in The Ladykillers?
A: General Gordon, the Parrot.

Q: If you weren’t doing this what would you be doing?
A: I’m supposed to be writing a pantomime based on Frankenstein at the moment – I’ll have to get back on to it when the shows over!

Q: What’s your dream role?
A: Honey crumbed ham with a bit of potato salad and plain crisps in a tiger bread crusty bap.

Q: Who’s your greatest inspiration?
A: I’d like to sound as effortless with words as Milton Jones, and deliver lines as deadpan as Steven Wright. I’d like to improvise like Paul Merton, and make up songs as well as Josie Lawrence. But I guess the person I admire the most is Sarah Harding from Girls Aloud, because she’s got smashing knockers.

Meet the cast: David Pibworth

2008-06-16T06:53:00.000-07:00

10 questions to help you get to know the cast of MKTOC's production of The Ladykilllers 8 - 12 July '08 (box office: 0845 2410967)

David Pibworth plays Louis Harvey, originally played by Herbert Lom

Q: What’s your favourite comedy?
A: Porridge

Q: Do you have a favourite comedy catch phrase?
A: “Don’t Tell Him Pike” Very famous line from episode of Dad’s Army. There may have been far cleverer ones but that made me laugh more at the time, than anything since.

Q: What’s you’re favourite part of putting on a performance?
A: When it goes onto the stage for the first time (assuming it works!)

Q: Do you have a preferred medium for enjoying comedy?
A: Stage, by a long way.

Q:What’s your proudest on-stage moment?
A: Doing a spot with Norman Wisdom in London some years back.

Q: What’s the most embarrassing moment you’ve had on stage?
A: Missing a cue to go on stage in a production of The Seagull. A very nice actress covered for me and I somehow got away with it. Also on that performance I had to pretend read a newspaper on stage at one point and got intrigued by an article about Brian London, the ex British Heavyweight boxer, and missed some lines as I was busy reading. I decided at that point never to act in a production that didn’t interest me.

Q: Who’s your favourite character in The Ladykillers?
A: Mrs Wilberforce and her old biddy friends. Priceless comedy.

Q: If you weren’t doing this what would you be doing?
A: Producing stage and music shows.

Q: What’s your dream role?
A: Sir Henry in Sir Henry at Rawlinson End by Vivian Stanshall. Not many people have heard of it, but you wait until we get it on stage! (It was Trevor Howards last film role, so I may be aiming too high.)

Q: Who’s your greatest inspiration?
Peter Cook

The Bolivian Sunshine Dogs signed to Raymer Sounds

2008-06-13T05:12:00.000-07:00

The Bolivian Sunshine Dogs have been signed by the independent Jazz record company Raymer Sounds and are planning to get in the studio and begin recording from the beginning of July. The cd will be distributed in specialist shops throughout the UK and via their website.

Watch this space for news updates on their schedule:

22 June Waterside Festival in Milton Keynes, 22nd June
29 June Olney Recreation Ground
05 July Newport Pagnell Carnival, 5th July
02 Aug The Robin Hood, Clifton Reynes (performing with Kenny Ball and his jazzmen)
Sept Official Monster Raving Loony Party (tbc)

visit www.mktoc.co.uk or www.myspace.com/theboliviansunshinedogs for more information

more behind the scenes from MKTOC

2008-06-06T05:02:00.000-07:00

As promised, here's another clip from our recent rehearsal of The Ladykillers...

Performance 8-12 July at The Chrysalis Theatre in Milton Keynes,

Tickets selling fast, to book yours call 0845 2410967

MKTOC supporting the Bolivian Sunshine Dogs

2008-05-28T06:53:00.000-07:00

After an absence of 28 years, the Bolivian Sunshine Dogs are back together again. With all the surviving original members, Spike, Cool Hand Uke, Tom Tom, Napoleon and Son, Jules the Spoon, Arkwright and Nev the Tuba, they are set to go back on the road again next year on their 'News Of The Crumble' tour.

"The funniest band I've seen for years." Kenny Ball - September 2007

See the band in action appearing with Kenny Ball and his Jazz men:

2nd August 2008, the Robin Hood Pub, Clifton Reynes, near Olney, Bucks
Tickets just £15.00 each, call our box office on 0845 2410967

Behind the scenes

2008-05-27T06:04:00.000-07:00

Rehearsals for The Ladykillers are underway and all is well. Here is a 'behind the scenes' glimpse of a recent rehearsal at The Two Brewers, Olney.

More clips to follow over the coming weeks as we gear up for the big performance 8-12 July.

Alec Guinness in The Ladykillers

2008-05-19T08:18:00.000-07:00

Shame on you if you've never seen the original Oscar nominated, BAFTA award winning version of The Ladykillers! Featuring comedy geniuses Alec Guinness and Peter Sellers with a cameo appearance from the late, great Frankie Howerd, The Ealing Studio production of The Ladykillers was voted 36th greatest comedy of all time by Total Film magazine in 2000 and in 2006 featured in Film 4's 50 Films to See Before You Die.

As our production (8-12 July 2008 at The Chrysalis Theatre, Milton Keynes) is based on the original script, we've found a YouTube trailer to give you a taster.

Now get on and call our box office to buy your tickets!
TEL: 0845 2410967

What's On

2008-05-16T03:19:00.000-07:00

8 - 12 July 2008
The Ladykillers: The Chrysalis Theatre, Camphill, Milton Keynes

We are delighted to present the stage play of what is arguably the greatest "Ealing Comedy" film – the Ladykillers (made in 1955 and starring Alec Guinness, Peter Sellers, Herbert Lom and many more!).

A gang of gentleman crooks, led by the sinister Professor, use a sweet, if rather eccentric, granny as a pawn in their scheme to steal a large quantity of cash in a security van heist.

All goes to plan when the innocent old lady unwittingly plays her part for the men she thinks are humble musicians. But, when she finally catches on to what's happening and threatens to inform the police, our thieves are left with a problem. Surely disposing of this elderly witness can’t be too hard…

2 August 2008
Kenny Ball & his Jazz men featuring Bolivian Sunshine Dogs: Robin Hood Pub, Clifton Reynes

After an absence of 28 years, The Bolivian Sunshine Dogs are back together again. With all the surviving original members, Spike, Cool Hand Uke, Tom Tom, Napoleon and Son, Jules the Spoon, Arkwright and Nev the Tuba, they are set to go back on the road again next year on their 'News Of The Crumble' tour. Catch this unique opportunity to see them performing with Kenny Ball and his Jazz men.

The Ladykillers tickets now on sale!

2008-05-14T09:21:00.000-07:00

Date: Tue 8th July 2008 - Sat 12th July 2008
Location: The Chrysalis Theatre, Camphill, Milton Keynes

Milton Keynes Theatre of comedy present the stage play of the 1955 Ealing Comedy ‘The Ladykillers’. A gang of crooks, led by the sinister Professor, use a rather eccentric granny as a pawn in their scheme to rob a security van. When she discovers the robbery, the crooks must dispose of her… but it is not easy!

Box Office: 0845 2410967
Email: mktoc@tesco.net