Saturday 4th April 2026

Woke at 0400, and 0600...alarm at 0730. Felt relatively refreshed, though, compared to recent nights. Descended to make tea, and porridged in my room, before driving in to the theatre for a 0930 start. Warmed up, then went through notes, and worked some bits and pieces, before lunch break. Prepared for the second dress run. Tried to hold back a bit, to save some energy for tonight's full house. Went OK...I felt ready! Dinner break, followed by warm up and sound check, then they opened the house and 600 people piled in. Albert Cooper's daughter Jane had managed to find a couple of her deceased father's pipes, and I utilised one of them in my Grandad scenes. The audience were really up for a good time, and I enjoyed extracting the comedy from all my characters...the show went down a storm. Standing ovation at the end...what an amazing night in the theatre! Showered after the show before ascending to the bar. Eddie York was there, as was Sarah Mortimer, Tim Welton and Lynn Whitehead, who had all been in the 1989 production. Got collared by a woman and her daughter...turned out to be Zoe, who had worked behind the bar in 1988/1989! She'd had a bit of a fling with Graham at the time!!! Did the rounds, catching up with various people. Carol Ruggier, who had played Molly in the 1991 production, had made it up from London, in the company of her fella, Bryan. Albert Cooper's daughters, Sarah and Jane, were there too. Had a nice chat with Jenny, Liz Evans' daughter, who plays rugby for the Welsh national team. All in all, a great night. By the time I drove back to Penkhull, Storm Dave was in full swing...bits of tree in the streets! Got to bed around 0030...