Surviving Spike

Appearing on Celebrity Big Brother in 2006 has done much to revive Michael Barrymore’s career as an entertainer, a career which came to a seemingly fatal standstill after Stuart Lubbock was found dead in his swimming pool in 2001. In Surviving Spike, he puts himself in the shoes of another legendary British entertainer – the much-loved writer and comic, Spike Milligan.

Richard Harris’ engaging portrait of the former Goon Show star is adapted from the memoirs of Norma Farnes, Milligan’s manager for 36-years, played with commanding ease here by former Byker Grove girl and Strictly Come Dancing winner, Jill Halfpenny. The narrative looks back on Farnes and Milligan’s tumultuous relationship, painting an acute picture of the writer’s struggle to overcome depression between 1966 and 2002, the year of his death.

Halfpenny’s effortlessly pleasant performance as Farnes is the real highlight of the show, while Richard Baron’s skillful direction ensures that the Assembly Rooms’ expansive Music Hall stage is utilised to its full potential. But it is Barrymore’s amusing but occasionally lacklustre performance that detracts from the impact that Surviving Spike could make. He simply doesn’t capture Milligan’s constant oscillation between mental illness and creative brilliance with quite the necessary lucidity.

By far the most captivating moment in the play occurs when Barrymore re-enacts one of Milligan’s successful stand-up routines, during which time he appears much more focused and convincing than at any other point in the show – perhaps suggesting that he is happier when not sharing the limelight. However, despite these weaknesses, Barrymore and Halfpenny strike up a persuasive on-stage chemistry that’s more than adequate to carry Surviving Spike through its shakier moments.