Good Fun is a play by

Victoria Wood Victoria Wood (19 May 1953 – 20 April 2016) was an English comedian, actress, lyricist, singer, composer, pianist, screenwriter, producer and director. Wood wrote and starred in dozens of sketches, plays, musicals, films and sitcoms over se ...

, first performed in 1980. It is set in an

Arts Centre An art centre or arts center is distinct from an art gallery or art museum. An arts centre is a functional community centre with a specific remit to encourage arts practice and to provide facilities such as theatre space, gallery space, venues for ...

North West England North West England is one of nine official regions of England and consists of the ceremonial counties of England, administrative counties of Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside. The North West had a population of ...

Origins

Wood, keen to trade on her previous stage success '' Talent'', was commissioned to write another play by impresario

Michael Codron Sir Michael Victor Codron (born 8 June 1930) is a British theatre producer, known for his productions of the early work of Harold Pinter, Christopher Hampton, David Hare, Simon Gray and Tom Stoppard. He has been honoured with a Laurence Olivi ...

. "I wrote one called ''Pals'', which he said was 'very enjoyable'. This is a euphemism for wincing, so it went in the bin. I then wrote another called ''Good Fun''."

Performance

The play was first performed in April 1980 at

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

Crucible Theatre The Crucible Theatre (often referred to simply as "The Crucible") is a theatre in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England which opened in 1971. Although it hosts regular theatrical performances, it is best known for hosting professional snooker's m ...

. It was directed by

David Leland David Leland (born 20 April 1947) is an English film director, screenwriter and actor who came to international fame with his directorial debut ''Wish You Were Here'' in 1987. Life He initially trained as an actor at Central School of Speech ...

. It starred

Annabel Leventon Annabel Leventon (born 20 April 1942 in Hertfordshire, England) is an English actress who has acted in various roles on stage and television. While reading English at the University of Oxford she made several appearances at the Oxford Playhouse ...

as Liz,

Charles McKeown Charles McKeown ( ; born 1946) is a British actor and writer, perhaps best known for his collaborations with Terry Gilliam. The two met while shooting '' Monty Python's Life of Brian'', while McKeown was doing bit parts in the film. Screenwriti ...

as Frank, Gregory Floy as Mike, Victoria Wood as Lynne, Joe Figg as Kev,

Julie Walters Dame Julia Mary Walters (born 22 February 1950), known professionally as Julie Walters, is an English actress. She is the recipient of four British Academy Television Awards, two British Academy Film Awards, two International Emmy Awards, a ...

as Betty,

Noreen Kershaw Noreen Kershaw is an English television actress and director. She trained at the Manchester Polytechnic School of Theatre and, at Liverpool's Everyman Theatre, originated the title role of the play '' Shirley Valentine'', later made famous by ...

as Gail and

Christopher Hancock Christopher Anthony Arthur Hancock (5 June 1928 – 29 September 2004) was a British television and theatre actor. He was born in Bishop Auckland, County Durham, England. His brother was actor Stephen Hancock. He and his brother trained a ...

as Maurice. The show was then performed at The Crucible Theatre again in June that year with some cast changes.

Polly James Polly James (born 8 July 1941) is an English actress with a career in theatre, film, television and radio. Career Pauline James was born in Blackburn, Lancashire, under the name Pauline Devaney. After graduating from RADA, her TV career began ...

played Liz,

Sam Kelly Roger Michael Kelly (19 December 1943 – 14 June 2014), known by the stage name Sam Kelly, was an English actor who appeared in film, television, radio and theatre. He is best known for his roles as Captain Hans Geering in '' 'Allo 'Allo ...

played Frank and Meg Johnson played Betty. After The Crucible's second version, the plan was to transfer the play to the West End. Though this never happened, it was performed at the King's Head Theatre in

Islington Islington () is a district in the north of Greater London, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the ar ...

. Wood said she heard a man at the interval saying "It's a bit witty witty isn't it?" Wood's view of the play was that "there was an awful lot wrong with it but there were some lovely performances and the audiences enjoyed it." After ''Good Fun'' Wood concentrated on television comedy and her career as a stand up comic. Though she did write two more plays "which to save bothering Michael Codron, I called 'very enjoyable' and put straight in the bin."

Reviews

Robin Thurber of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' said "''Good Fun'' is just that... full of knowing little laughs. Dry laughs, belly laughs, dirty laughs and running giggles".

James Fenton James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

of ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...

'' said "pigeon holers will find a space for (Wood) beside

Joe Orton John Kingsley Orton (1 January 1933 – 9 August 1967), known by the pen name of Joe Orton, was an English playwright, author, and diarist. His public career, from 1964 until his death in 1967, was short but highly influential. During this brie ...

and

Ken Dodd Sir Kenneth Arthur Dodd (8 November 1927 – 11 March 2018) was an English comedian, singer and occasional actor. He was described as "the last great music hall entertainer", and was primarily known for his live stand-up performances. A life ...

...But her voice is characteristically and aggressively female. Just like ''Talent''... ''Good Fun''s rude words, hilarious gags and the insights which are more varied than either are all in the mouths of the women at its centre."

Song List

Act One: *Liz's Song *Community Arts *I've Had It Up To Here *Turned Out Nice Again Act Two: *Make A Joke *Handicrafts *Frank and Gail Duet *I'll Do Anything *Bloody Clowns *Good Fun Wood, Victoria Wood (1988). Good Fun & Talent (1st ed.). London: Methuen. .

References

{{Victoria Wood 1980 plays Plays by Victoria Wood