Interview: Playwright & actor Paul Bradshaw on TELL ME STRAIGHT at Chiswick Playhouse

Ahead of the upcoming revival of tell me straight at Chiswick Playhouse, we spoke to playwright and actor Paul Bradshaw about his experience both writing and performing this play and why it’s important for him to work with a company of queer and working class people to reflect the work he puts out into the world.

Tell us about tell me straight.

tell me straight is a fast paced coming-of-age comedy drama that follows Him as we look back at his (too) many romantic encounters with results ranging from hilarious to embarrassing to dangerous. No matter the result, all these guys have one thing in common...they’re all straight.

You have written and are starring in the show. Do you feel even closer to the material you’ve created because of this?

It’s the first time I’ve ever performed work I’ve written and there is a level of freedom that comes from playing a part that I have helped create. It’s only the second time in my career that I am playing a gay character, which has been so much fun too. The whole team have helped to craft these characters and the wonderful vibe throughout the process has meant that both me and George Greenland feel so connected to the piece.

Were you pleased that you’ve been able to reunite the original cast for your upcoming run at Chiswick Playhouse?

I was so pleased! They are honestly both the most fantastic people. As soon as I met Stephanie Levi-John, I knew she was the perfect choice to voice Dani - she’s amazing and was a real hit with the audiences/critics during the Kings Head run. I’ve been working with George since he played the lead in my play Two Cities in 2019. He can literally do anything and is extremely playful, which is key for a piece like tell me straight - I can’t wait to get back onstage with him.

tell me straight is essentially a product of the first lockdown. Can you tell us about its creative journey from June 2020 to now?

Whilst the lockdown was an incredibly uncertain time for us all collectively, it meant that for the first time in my life I had the luxury to focus purely on writing. tell me straight flew out in a series of free writing sessions and was developed over Zoom, in my living room and even on the roof of George’s block - it was a mad time! By the time it was programmed during the Queer Season at the King’s Head, we had already workshopped the script loads. Then the audiences helped the piece to grow even further - their response was so great and we even managed to snag an OFFCOMM Commendation for Best Play - short run. It’s been an overwhelmingly positive experience and I can’t wait to see what comes next for the piece.

How much of the play is biographical?

The play is inspired by real life experiences and encounters that I have had since I was around 15/16. I have combined anecdotes and moments to create the core characters that George plays and all of the monologues that I perform throughout are based on real life people - including a soldier, a chef and a guy that got horny during Monopoly - you honestly couldn’t make it up! I really wanted the piece to be fun and for the audience to have a proper belly laugh but to also capture the fluidity of sexuality and friendship and how when that line becomes blurred people can be hurt in the process.

How important was it for you to ensure that everyone on the team is either queer or from a working-class background?

I wanted to create a company that would be reflected in the work so everyone behind the desk is either working-class or queer. I remember being at drama school and in a year of 46 students, I was one of a handful of people who grew up on a council estate. Then when you get into the industry, that percentage drops even more! So when we were programmed at the King’s Head, I knew I wanted to change that. I am really passionate about giving opportunities to those who are underrepresented and will continue to do that going forward. Particularly as part of the funding we secured from the Arts Council is to provide writing workshops to queer and working-class artists - more info on that can be found on our Twitter/Insta - @tmsplayldn

Has the show been further developed since it’s sell-out 2021 run at the Kings Head Theatre?

Everyone in the company has been very busy since then but we’ve managed to have a couple of catch ups about the piece. I’m not sure how much the script itself will change but the run at Chiswick is twice as long as previously so I’m sure it’ll grow as we go on. Also, the auditorium is a different set up which will mean that the staging, lighting design and inevitably the feel and look of parts of the play will be changing - which is gonna be so much fun to explore.

How would you encourage people to buy a ticket for tell me straight?

Is it wrong to say your own work is funny?! The audiences at the King’s Head said how nice it was to get to fully laugh after the last couple of years - so maybe it’s not so bad to big myself up?! tell me straight is the kind of play that everyone can see themselves in - we’ve all chased the wrong person, we’ve all batted away people we don’t fancy and we’ve all made a fool of ourselves in the process - and if you haven’t, come and see how all of that affects the characters in this (spoiler alert - it affects them quite a bit...) People have compared it to Fleabag, Schitts Creek and I May Destroy You (which is life goals!) - so if you’re a fan of any of those you should get yourself a ticket to tell me straight!

tell me straight runs at Chiswick Playhouse from 15-26 February, with tickets available here.