Charles Bennett’s smash hit play Blackmail, adapted for the screen by Alfred Hitchcock, is back in a new version by acclaimed playwright Mark Ravenhill at Mercury Theatre Colchester next month, bringing a modern eye to the twists and turns of a classic thriller. We spoke to Patrick Walshe McBride who plays Ian Tracy in the piece.

For those who may not have heard of Blackmail, can you tell us what the show is about and a little about your character?

The show is a thriller that grips you and makes you think: “What would I do???” I think it’s like a heart-pounding nightmare with a strong moral dimension (which is also extremely entertaining and has a dark sense of humour). I think the audience will be on the edge of their seats right until the end and then argue about it in the bar afterwards over a well-deserved drink!

My character is quite a mysterious figure but I can say he’s an outsider, he’s fighting for his life and he’s pretty ruthless. He’s been a real golden boy, but his life has spiraled by the time the audience meets him.

Blackmail was originally written in 1928. How is the play still relevant today?

Mark Ravenhill has written a new version of the play that brings it bang up to date. When I first read it, I was expecting a tense, twisty ride, which it is. But I was also struck by how modern the play is and how relevant it feels. It touches on so many issues – violence against women, class divides, police brutality, sexual identity, fame, and celebrity culture, and more. What’s great is that it has a light touch, too, so it doesn’t feel preachy or too heavy – you’re thinking about these things in a way that feeds into the tension and the dilemma at the heart of the story.

What has the process of reimagining what was originally quite an old text been like? What new things have writer Mark Ravenhill and director Anthony Banks brought to the piece?

We’re still early in rehearsals at the moment and I’ve deliberately not read the original text or watched the Hitchcock film. I know that Mark and director Anthony Banks have drawn out the themes that resonate with the discussions we’re having in the world at the moment. But I also know that Blackmail was a huge success as a play and a film when it first came out in the twenties. Charles Bennett, who wrote it, went on to work with Hitchcock a lot and was a master at crafting suspense and thrills. Mark and Anthony have brought that into even sharper focus – they’ve cut down the number of characters and locations so it’s a really tight, gripping, claustrophobic experience.

This production has quite a small cast. What is like to work with a small cast rather than a large ensemble cast?

There’s nowhere to hide! Except in your dressing room, because nobody has to share. 

Has working on this play challenged any preconceptions and beliefs you had previously on the issues the play covers?

It’s set in Chelsea in the 1920s and doing research into the different worlds the area contained has been eye-opening. The play features a clash between the close-knit working-class community by the river and the bohemian, artistic, orgiastic set who lived nearby in what was once called the Latin Quarter. During the course of the story, there are so many twists and turns that your beliefs are constantly being challenged. I find myself being on one character’s side completely and then something will happen that makes me understand it all from another character’s point of view and suddenly I’m rooting for them instead.

This is your first play at the Mercury Theatre. What is it like to work there?

Truly, it’s been a brilliant place to work. The new building is beautiful and kitted out perfectly. The people and the atmosphere are lovely and supportive. And the food’s great! I love it when a theatre is nestled right at the heart of a town, and the Mercury is a great example of that.

Blackmail plays at the Mercury Theatre from 4-19 March, with tickets available here.