Brassed Off
★★★★☆ Inspired
Inverleith St Serf’s Church Centre (Venue 83): Sat 8 – Sat 22 Aug
Review by Julia Amour ★★★★☆ Inspired
An inspired local setting and some barnstorming performances make for an assured rendition by Leitheatre of Brassed Off, adapted from the 1996 Britflick and graced by the magic touch of the Lochgelly Band.
It’s always a particular pleasure to hear a play in Scots at the Fringe: here, it’s thanks to director Susan Duffy deftly relocating the action of Paul Allen’s adaptation of Mark Herman’s original screenplay from Yorkshire to a fictional pit village in Fife, and expertly tweaking the dialogue to match.
Rhys Hackett with Billy Renfrew and Linda Thomson. Pic: Sammi Watson.
The story of what a looming pit closure does to the spirit of the community, including its beloved brass band, paints a gloomy picture for the miners and their families as they grapple with tough decisions, mixed motives, and harsh words. The register is dark comedy though, and the cast do a skilled job of pulling off some difficult bittersweet scenes.
While the actors deserve great credit, it must be said that what makes this show extra special is its celebration of the power of music, with an essential role played by a 12-strong troupe from Lochgelly Band, founded in 1854 and here with musical directors Chris Shanks, Mike Marzella and Andrew Duncan.
thrilling start
The play gets off to a thrilling start as the band marches up the aisle to join the actors in a blacked-out auditorium lit only by their helmet head-torches. The stage backcloth designed by Derek Blackwood is painted in a Lowry-esque townscape of pit machinery, warehouses and miners’ cottages.
Flexible props, well chosen by Irene Cuthbert, Chris Dall and Jacqui Smith, allow for split-stage scenes to be seamlessly played on what is quite a small stage for the size of cast. Skilful lighting by Mark Hajducki and Stefano Binando, with impeccable sound design by Toby Russell, is delivered by Sammi Watson and Sean Quinn.
A scene from Brassed off. Pic Sammi Watson
A lot of the best buddy comedy comes from the pairings of world-weary band members Harry and Jim (Lee Sheddon and Tim Foley) and their canny, acerbic wives Rita and Vera (Lynne Morris and Alison Kennedy). All their performances are confident and relaxed, revelling in the Scots tradition of ‘flyting’ – exchanging insulting banter – that the revised script offers them, and giving the show an appealing naturalism.
Perhaps the adaptors understandably wanted to see more of Rita and Vera as there seems to be a new scene featuring their drunken antics which sits a bit unevenly; but it is certainly to be applauded that this version sands some of the edges off the jarring nineties sexism of the film.
charismatic
Hannah Campbell and Ruari Johnson have an easy rapport as on-again, off-again, on-again couple Gloria and Andy, as well as convincing in their wider roles as happy-go-lucky village Casanova and local girl made good. Andy Harris is also a charismatic presence as bandleader Danny who tries to inspire the community to keep faith in the music while their lives, and his, are falling apart.
There remain a few stumbling blocks in plot and characterisation that were there in the original film and hamper the coherence of the second half: like how did the band go from shambolic to prize-winning so quickly; and would a sassy lass like Gloria really put up with Andy’s cowardly shilly shallying?
Band members playing for Danny (Andy Harris) in hospital. Pic: Sammi Watson.
But this is stirring drama of broad sweeps, and much is forgotten thanks to the real emotional punch delivered by the crises and triumphs of the village community – especially in the scene where the band play Danny Boy for their hospitalised bandleader, to the tart disapproval of his nurse (Moira Macdonald).
The most tragic and tricky roles are those of Phil, Danny’s good-hearted but hapless son who has fallen deeply into debt, and his wife Sandra. Billy Renfrew and Linda Thomson do exceptional work in finding a tone that reflects their dignity as well as their despair, balanced with grim humour. It might even be said that the stage adaptation improves on the film’s lurid treatment of Phil’s depression, which allows Renfrew to really shine in the part.
heart-swelling
It’s also a clever trope of the stage play to make Phil and Sandra’s eight-year-old son Shane into a narrator of the action, and Rhys Hackett is well cast as the doggedly inquisitive young boy. If it encourages a few more tear-jerking moments, as when Shane is literally handed the baton by his grandpa Danny, then that is more than balanced by the heart-swelling power of the live music finale connecting the audience directly with the community spirit championed by this show.
Hannah Campbell (Gloria) and Ruari Johnson (Andy) at band practice. Pic: Sammi Watson.
This spirit is also exemplified by the commitment and contributions from the wider company who should be acknowledged: including other parts played by John MacAskill, John Archer, Glen Liddall and George Townsend-Gill.
The musical power of the whole production is only underlined further, when you learn that Lochgelly have won through to the National Brass Band Championships in York this September, and are fundraising on Crowdfunder to get there.
Whether art imitates life, or life imitates art, it feels like this just makes the production even more meaningful.
Running time: Two hours and 20 minutes (including an interval).
Inverleith St Serf’s Church Centre (Main Hall), 1A Clark Rd EH5 3BD (Venue 83).
Saturday 8 – Saturday 22 August 2026.
Mon – Fri: 7.30pm; Sats: 2.30pm.
Tickets and details: Book here at EdFringe.com.
Leitheatre website: www.leitheatre.com
Facebook: @Leitheatre
Instagram: @leitheatre
Lochgelly Band Facebook: @lochgellyband.
Crowdfunder to get to national finals: www.crowdfunder.co.uk
Andy Harris and band. Pic: Sammi Watson.
ENDS
