Theatre review: Testament of Yootha, Gilded Balloon Teviot, Edinburgh

"If you watch Man About the House or George and Mildred with the sound down, you could be watching a Beckett play," says solo performer Caroline Burns Cooke in character as English stage and screen actor Yootha Joyce, who made her name as nagging wife Mildred Roper in both series during the 1970s.
Testament of YoothaTestament of Yootha
Testament of Yootha

Testament of Yootha, Gilded Balloon Teviot (Venue 14) * *

This line indicates the major dichotomy drawn by this study of the character; the balance between her early years as a respected stage actor and the pressure and repetition of her later career as a household name.

Cookie's impersonation is vibrant and accurate, yet - beyond the chance to revisit Joyce's biography and her alcohol-related death, a struggle which is barely signposted – it's not clear why this story is being told, or what major struggles Joyce faced beyond those of any reasonably well-known working actor.

Until 26 August

Related topics: