Sandwiched in-between a rehearsal of my own and an evening show I had already booked, my fiancée and I found ourselves with three hours to kill and I remembered Steve Hughes from Hughes Media recommending Spotlight Youth Productions. I must admit, I was intrigued by the billed show — The Diary of Horace Wimp, as it could only refer to the 1979 ELO song of the same name.

This show is an original concept (We like original scripts) by Steve Groves with musical content selected by Groves and musical director, Ian Windsor. Directing was Andrew Cox and Michelle Windsor with Nigel Anderson as producer. And the plot followed pretty much the song in question where poor Horace, in a dead-end job, meets the love of his life. More turmoil and strife follow before an inevitable happy ending. The songs themselves all came from UK Midlands based bands and (more often than not) an era I grew up in. The script really stood out to me as a writer, and it is something I, having been there myself, would have been proud of.

From the opening bars of Black Sabbath’s Paranoid, I was hooked. Size of a Cow (Wonder Stuff), Rio (Duran Duran) A Message to You (Specials), Ordinary World (Duran Duran again and loved it), plus a plethora of ELO tunes such as Mr Blue Sky, Rock and Roll is King and the title of the show, The Diary of Horace Wimp. This latter was a good example of an incredible amount of energy which on top of the obvious high talent on display, was clear throughout. I remember turning to my fiancée after about 20 minutes and just saying with a wide beam, “I love this.” They even resurrected a hit from my long-forgotten memory dump of 1984 with Stephen ‘Tin Tin’ Duffy’s, Kiss Me. I also enjoyed the psychedelic dreamers, particularly during Flowers in the Rain (The Move). Great costumes throughout as well.

In the lead roles were Ben Coleman as Horace and Lottie Carter playing Rio. Both were excellent and duetted well for a lovely rendition of Slade’s, How Does it Feel? Then, supporting strongly were Nadine Hewitt and Immy Green as the narrators, Jess Walker (Barbara Wimp), Jake Sylvester (Harry), Sadie Groves (Henrietta), Leyshon Simms (Hugo), Becky Cartwright (Rev. Eileen), Mabel Deakin (Rosetta), Freya Gould (Rosie), Stella Franklin (Reagan), Ellie Coleman (Donna), Joel Parker-Pearson (Dave), Isla Mason (Doris), Alfie Stokes (Mr Brent), Emily Hughes (Ms Tinsley) and Lucas Pearson (Dream Horace). Finally, there was Nancy Arnold who gave a fabulous lead in my favourite number of the show — Xanadu.

A few years ago, another youth company thanked me for naming the entire cast and said how much it meant to the kids. Talk about Rod – Ones – Back. Still, here goes, and please message me if I miss someone or get a name wrong. Come on, there are over 50 of them! So, also brilliant were Mellisa Connaire, Emilia Dodd, Hanna Ellison, Casey Godwin, Heidi Gottschall, Courtney Guy, Belle Hales, Evie Johnson, Scarlett Palij, Ffion Pountain, Nellie Stokes, Dol Taylor, Emily Weaver, Isabelle Allport, Macy Bate, Miyah Bate, Maisy Dennis, Amelia Critchley, Grace Elson, Danni Hackett, Evie-Mae Jakes, Freya Longdon, Paloma Shelley, Mariama Trawally, Jess Deakin, Amelia Exton, Lucy Gouge, Iona Gould, Ben Mason, Riley Morris, Victor Parker, Ayva Redmond and Harriet Weaver. Phew!

This was a wonderful show, made even more special, having gone into it blind, by seeing some children of those I have performed alongside over the years, and even a couple of kids I directed in my pantomimes and performed with. Credit must also go to Ian Windsor (Keys) and his band of James Windsor (Drums), Steve Parker-Pearson (Guitar) and Chris Pearson (Bass). Last week, I watched Geezer Butler (Black Sabbath) play Paranoid with The Foo Fighters in front of tens of thousands, and this offering kicked as much ass.

Spotlight return next January with Aladdin and having found yet another marvellous youth company, I promise I shall be back.

Cheers.

Antony N Britt