Horrible Histories, Terrible Tudors at Storyhouse Chester Review

DISCLOSURE – TICKETS TO SEE THE SHOW WERE GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER AND GUEST FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW

Reviewed by H Chan

This evening, we were invited to the Storyhouse in Chester, to watch the Horrible Histories Terrible Tudors. I went to watch with my son, 11, and my friend and her son who is 12. The boys haven’t had as much experience with HH as my older girls have, as it doesn’t seem to be on television as often as it once was. The show was iconic, and we used to love watching their gruesome but funny antics, and had a playlist of the songs. It is the perfect blend of engagement and history! Originally aired on CBBC, it was catered to give children the highlights of history, and was based on a book series of the same name.

The boys weren’t sure what to expect, but they had the best time. Their eyes were glued to the stage, which shows that even though some think the show stereotypical in places, younger ones really do relate to this kind of storytelling and the information is retained because of the stories and humour used to share it. Whilst most of the content was aimed at the younger audience, there were some jokes which would have gone over their heads, along with modern references that parents would pick up on.

The show begins from how Henry Tudor came to be in power, and ended with the death of Queen Elizabeth. They cover all the naughtiness, the lives and lies of the royal family. They touched on King Edward, Bloody Mary and of course Henry the Eighth (I will not get that song out of my head for months now) The gross bits of history are shared with jokes and lots of actions, complete with jokes about bottoms, and high energy songs covering subjects like what happened to Henry’s wives.

The cast was brilliant and clever. Rob Cummings took the lead as Doctor D, he was charismatic and entertaining, it was hard not to laugh when he did and yes, he can sing well! How he stayed in character on some of the funnier moments was astounding. He shared the stage with Megan Parry, who was fantastic as Queen Elizabeth, and Jack Ballard, who kept us laughing. The backstage teams were excellent with their timings on sound effects and lighting, and the props and costumes were all great quality. It was clear that a lot of thought and effort went into this production.

Their comedic timing was spot on, and we were even treated to some ad lib moments which were absolutely hilarious. I can’t remember the last time I laughed so much at a theatre! We loved the interaction with the crowds too. There was just enough to be engaging and not annoying. The football analogy to explain the Church of England vs the Catholic Church was impressive, and actually got my son to understand the situation and how protestants came to be.

During the interval, we were invited to don our 3D glasses for the second portion of the show, which whilst much shorter than the first, incorporated the screen in the background into the performance. The children loved this part, watching pieces of the Spanish Armada crash into the audience, and to see the explosions to match the stories.

Overall, we gave this collectively five out of five stars. It was funny, engaging and we had a great time. We discovered that they are also performing Awful Egyptians over the weekend, so will be looking to book for that one too, based on how good we thought this one was.

The Storyhouse itself is a fantastic venue, right in the city centre. With its own café, bar and even a library, you can relax before the show. They have a large space perfect for those with families to spend some time together. There is parking within minutes, and the staff have always been genuinely friendly. I highly recommend it as a venue for shows.

You can find tickets for Horrible Histories here, https://www.storyhouse.com/whats-on/horrible-histories-terrible-tudors/ You can find Awful Egyptians on the same link, and can save 15% if you book to see both. Performances at the Storyhouse run until the 25th October, but the tour will visit other theatres, so be sure to search if you can’t make this weekend.

Prices were great, beginning at £25.35 per person. The running time was around an hour and forty five minutes with a fifteen minute interval.

Rating: 5/5