Review: THE LONELY LONDONERS, Jermyn Street Theatre
Marc Brenner
Cast a stone across the water and watch the ripples gently fan across the surface. The Windrush Generation threw a stone that landed on these shores 75 years ago and the ripples have been felt ever since. They changed their lives and those of their children and grandchildren. We learnt what it meant to be a 'British Subject' and how the 'Mother Nation' sometimes failed to look after its own. This new play by Roy Williams adapts the novel written by Sam Selvon, and throws light on young West Indians trying to make a new life in London.
Our story begins in 1956 as London is buried under a familiar blanket of fog. Henry ‘Sir Galahad’ Oliver (Romario Simpson) has just arrived from Trinidad with a toothbrush and the clothes he stands in. Galahad seeks out Moses Aloetta (Gamba Cole) in Bayswater. Moses is the ‘fixer’ and a friendly face for newly arrived West Indian immigrants. Galahad soon learns the harsh realities of life in the nation’s capital. At best they find indifference and at worst downright hostility. To secure accommodation and a regular income is an almost daily challenge.
Galahad strikes a chord with Moses who is a fellow Trinidadian. Memories of a previous life come flooding back to Moses. Christina (Aimee Powell) is the love of his life and regularly comes to him as he dreams of the past. Big City (Gilbert Kyem Jnr) is a mischievous newcomer who can’t even get to grips with street names let alone the lifestyle. Lewis (Tobi Bakare) anxiously awaits the arrival of his mother and wife from Jamaica. Tanty (Carol Moses) can still see her little boy running around naked in the back yard; while Agnes (Shannon Hayes) has grand expectations of the life Lewis has planned for them.
A sparse set is populated by seven packing cases with an electronic matrix board behind. It periodically flashes up London postal codes which dazzles beyond what is comfortable for the audience. The play runs at one hour forty five minutes with no interval, which gives the narrative a much stronger rhythm. The actors remain on stage most of the time and perch on a packing case when their scene is complete. The cast are excellent and have mastered a crisp and highly literate script. The Lonely Londoners brings alive a tempestuous period of British social history. It paints an evocative picture of the discrimination people faced just because they were different; not to be missed.
****Four stars
The Lonely Londoners plays at the Jermyn Street Theatre until 6th April 2024 with tickets available here