The Day the Music Died. By Tony Garnett; A Review

The Day the Music Died. A Life Lived Behind the Lens. 

By Tony Garnett

This is an absolutely wonderful book by one of the best producers of films shown on BBC Television; it is a must for actors, producers, writers, directors – in fact anyone who has anything to do with the process of film making.

It is not a 'kiss and tell' piece and is wonderfully written with passion and feeling and in some places it is very moving. There is no name dropping, with one exception, nor gossip.

The one exception: I got the feeling that a chapter might have been suggested by the publisher, where Paul Newman is mentioned; as I said wonderfully written, but not that chapter and I don't think he (Tony) liked that period in his life, judging by the writing.

This is a memoir of Tony Garnett; the man, when he worked at the BBC – BBC Television, that is – who turned the drama department in to the National Theatre of Television.

Did the BBC deserve it, or really want it or even earn that phrase or praise?

Tony Garnett certainly deserved the praise for what he achieved there and, in fact, BBC Television Drama is still eating out on the work he did.

He was the producer of The Wednesday Play, so described by the infamous Internet Movie Date Base (IMDb) as a television series.

They were, in fact, ten single dramas (films) starting with Cathy Come Home in 1966 and ending with The Big Flame in 1969. Not forgetting the other IMDb described series called Play for Today, starting with Hard Labour in 1973 and ending with Spongers in 1979.

None of these were, in fact, 'plays' or parts of a series, they were full length single movies. They may have been politically motivated but who would not be politically motivated in the sixties and seventies when people in the UK were living in slums?

Between 1966 (Cathy) to 1979 he produced about 35 full length extraordinary films. Films that would win any award these days and films which never even see the desk of drama commissioning editors any more – and that is a pity.

I'm not saying the BBC doesn't produce good work these days, with the occasional series of Line of Duty and Secret Witness but the single film, the single great modern drama has gone.

In the book you will get to know what happened to the actress Topsy Jane; I remember seeing Topsy Jane in The Loneliness of a Long Distance Runner when the film was first released; I didn't notice her in particular, or really understand the film, but later, when I saw it again and appreciated it better, I noticed and wondered what had happened to such an exciting young talent. The IMDb didn't exist and no matter where I looked I couldn't find anything apart from the fact that she had left the movie Billy Liar and was replaced by Julie Christie. There are some distance shots of Topsy still in Billy Liar, so they say, but that was it.

There is a little more information on the IMDb now but this book tells all as Tony Garnett was married to her and, like the rest of the book, it is a very sad tale.

In fact you will wonder, when you read it, just how Tony Garnett even survived and went on to do the great work he did.

His parents both died when he was very young; up to that time his mother would play the piano and the little Tony would dance and sing with her then suddenly, in a very moving and disturbing chapter, he loses them and he didn't sing and dance again; the music had died.

His family was split up, he went to live with an aunt and uncle, whilst his brother lived elsewhere and Tony disappeared in to a world of books. Not Biggles, or the Famous Five, but Freud and on to Marx's Capital (which defeated him) and on the way to books by RD Laing and other psychological and educational writers he devoured the Jacobeans, Shakespeare, the romantic poets and on to English French and Russian novels which must have formed his political ideas and subjects used so usefully later in his producing career.

I have often thought I had a great deal in common with him; I was brought up in Birmingham, albeit it on the other side of the city, and in the book he mentions Oswald Bailey's Army & Navy Store, where I worked in my first job from school; I supported Aston Villa, as he does – he because he lived on that side of the city (I presume) and me because we were Irish and lived in Balsall Heath and Sparkhill. He mentions David Turner (the writer) - I was in his last TV play for BBC.

We are at the other end of the spectrum on lots of other things, maybe because of that slight difference in our ages – seven years.

He mentions The Beatles and says 'I Want to Hold Your Hand was written for twelve year olds' when people of my age, watching them live for the first time, watched them with a male dominated audience (the same age as The Beatles) – at The Ritz, in King's Heath, Birmingham.

However the next time I saw them, at the same venue, they did play to young teenagers and we couldn't hear them, so maybe he has a point.

I believe The Beatles had a great hand in changing society from what it was in the fifties to what it became in the seventies, via the swinging sixties. President Regan always thought he brought down the Berlin Wall but he didn't; it was The Beatles and Levi Jeans.

Just as politicians thought they worked wonders and miracles, when it came to the housing crisis, with the forming of Shelter (the housing and homeless charity) but they didn't; it was people like Ken Loach and Tony Garnett who did more than any politician, in fact Shelter was formed as a direct result of Cathy Come Home.

In this memoir, (and what is the difference between a memoir and an autobiography), there is a chapter on Dennis Potter, another favourite television writer of mine, but Tony Garnett knew him and worked with him and the information therein is very interesting.

I met Tony Garnett once; it was when he was meeting people for a mini series called Law and Order – mini series is the wrong way to describe the classic series that it turned out to be; I wrote a review about it on the infamous IMDb.

Tony was in a BBC office somewhere with the director Les Blair and there was something about them, something I also noticed when I met Mike Leigh. They looked at me and as they did I got the feeling that they were looking in to my soul, examining every part of me to see what they could do with me, where they could fit me in to their scheme of things with their series.

I didn't get in to it and when I saw it, and I still do see it, I could see why; there was nothing in it for me but there was plenty in this book for me. Thank you Tony; thank you for writing it.

The Last Review of Eddie and a lot more

Hi folks: first of all this is the last review for you to peruse. Now the question is, not to be or not to be, but the reason I put the reviews up warts and all in the first place.

A lot of friends, some who invested in the crowd funding, wanted to see them and I thought it a good way to show them off as they're not bad. Nobody going mad over them but you can see they are, more or less, the same.

But what would happen if they were really terrible? Well the first thing would be I wouldn't give the reviewer free tickets to anything else – that's if there ever is anything else but would I show them off?

Peter O'Toole had the worst notices ever when he did a tour of Macbeth – awful they were so he made the theatre post them outside for everybody to see; used them in advertising and let everybody know. And the result: a huge hit; it was hard to get a ticket the whole things was a huge success; even went to Broadway.

Another play, a musical this time, was slated by the critics; another worst notices ever situation. The director called the Box Office to see how bad the ticket sales were on the second day, as he was going to make arrangements to close the show.

He was told by the box office that the queues were around the block; they had sold out many months ahead. The show: Le Miserables. Twenty odd years later it is still running.

When I first went to Edinburgh with my Irish Show I had a problem with my guitar just as the first night was about to open: I lost my capo and had to use one which would not hold the strings down. The reviewer said I would make a fortune as I would appeal to the old and middle aged but that it was the worst guitar playing he had heard.

I saw him before the notice came out, at a party, and he said he loved the show and thought it would go far – then I saw the worst guitar notice. And guess what I did: I told the theatre to put the worst guitar notice at the front of the theatre; and the result? You guessed; nobody came – I wasn't Peter O'Toole.

Also the fact that my family show was booked in to the 11.30 PM slot. Needless to say I didn't end up there at any of the other Edinburgh visits and they only charged me one week's theatre rent.

That show I had stop every night whilst the cannons fired at the tattoo which was taking place in Edinburgh Castle close by.

My favourite review for Eddie was the first; the first one I posted on here: she seemed to have it down to a tee; she spotted the Irish bits and called my final song Joycian which, to a James Joyce fan, is the highest piece of praise to have – even though the song wasn't by the Genius Jim.

So here is the final review. It won't make any difference to my play. I have received an enquiry about taking the play to America; if that works out I will take it to Santa Monica Playhouse too and then . . . who knows? Let's see if I have to raise any money for it and a lot of other bits and pieces and odds and sods and stress and mayhem – who knows?

This is from AYoungerTheatre.com

Review: The Two Sides of Eddie Ramone, Jermyn Street Theatre

By James Bell on July 27, 2016 in Theatre

The Two Sides of Eddie Ramone, is as the title might suggest, a play built on conflict and tension. We see the titular character (played by Chris Sullivan), a formerly popular comedian now consigned to the cruise ship circuit, switch between his interior and exterior facing selves. And, alongside the play’s only other character, his daughter Katie (Shian Denovan), the piece sets up a fraught mirroring of recollections and intentions. Notwithstanding some flaws, the show is a thoughtful look how we build our realities and sense of self.

The subject matter is fiercely interior. The action opens on Eddie rattling through his tired stage performance when he suddenly finds he is having an out of body experience. This capitulates him inside his own head, where he starts to ruminate on his career and family relationships and builds a stylised life story constructed through his curated memories. It is striking that, even during his deepest ruminations, he is still performing to the audience, never quite able to let go of his on stage persona.

Later in the play his daughter joins him and adds her own clashing counter narrative, gradually unpicking the version of events that Eddie has built up in the first act. It is a deft manoeuvre from Sullivan, who also wrote and directed the show, and leaves the audience revising their interpretation to the very end. However some aspects feel a tad convenient and the narrative, trying to pack too much in, verges close to being implausible. The strong performances from Sullivan and Denovan, though, are able to paper over any cracks in the premise’s believability.

Eddie is of Irish descent and the work’s concerns are, too, staunchly in the Irish dramatic tradition. Catholicism, guilt, abuse, alcoholism and fear death are all writ large. The vision and thematic reach are grand in their scope, but there are some aspects of the execution which mean it falls short of its ambition. As the work unfolds entirely as a recollection, its main means of storytelling is through anecdote. These sometimes meander and run away with themselves and you catch yourself wondering what the point of all this exposition is, as it often adds little to the narrative thrust.

Despite a few unanswered questions, The Two Sides of Eddie Ramone’s chief interest is in its thoughtful character studies by the two performers. If you can overlook a few bizarre moments, it’s worth a look for their evocation of a troubled father-daughter relationship and the new light shed on it when it is remembered and retold.

The Two Sides of Eddie Ramone is playing Jermyn Street Theatre until 30 July. For more information and tickets, see the Jermyn Street Theatre website.

Eddie Review - last but one.

This is the last but one review - unless I can find another one. As I said warts and all. This might be warts but . . . look at the last eight words!!!

The 2 Sides of Eddie Ramone at Jermyn Street Theatre – Review

July 26, 2016 Last updated: July 26, 2016 1:17 am By Chris Omaweng

It’s a good thing, on balance, for The 2 Sides of Eddie Ramone to be nuanced and deep enough not to make it too obvious what precisely those two sides are. This isn’t a variation of Jekyll and Hyde, though if I were to hazard a guess I would imagine there’s a public-facing side and a private side. But even this is too rudimentary a distinction, as there really is no indication of Eddie (Chris Sullivan) being that much different when doing his stand-up routine as opposed to talking in lengthy soliloquies away from the crowds.

Don’t be put off by my description of the soliloquies as ‘lengthy’. I’ve seen a fair number of shows over the years that unnecessarily over complicate things by switching between scenes, backwards and forwards, not in chronological order, and it is hard work trying to untangle a confusing storyline. Here, the simplicity of both the minimalist set and the plot’s linear progression is refreshing. Lengthy, at least as far as this play goes, is good. Lengthy means the audience gets to know both Eddie and his daughter Katie (Shian Denovan) really well, and isn’t expending energy constantly re-orientating ourselves to yet another quick change of scene.

This production does let itself down, however, by being too slowly paced. I would not want to call for a breakneck pace – there are enough plays out there that are in a hurry, thank you very much – but the almost relentless serene and moderated tones, even when Katie is taking the audience on a journey through some rather harrowing personal experiences, makes the play stodgier than the script is. There is no need for melodramatic emotionalism, of course, but being quite so blasé about the tough challenges in Katie’s life makes her character less than fully credible. Okay, these characters are British, and are the epitome of stiff upper lip stoicism, but this is live theatre, and I think the show could have benefited from more of the thoughts and feelings in the script being demonstrably acted out rather than merely described.

The more distressing elements of the plot are balanced out by several excerpts of Eddie’s comedy routines, which were, for the most part, genuinely amusing, if of an outdated style. Not for him the aggressive put-downs and character assassinations of a lot of comedy acts these days, but pleasant jokes. Katie’s choice of career, broadly within the same industry as her father’s, threatens to give the play an aura of self-indulgence. There are some insightful musings on the life of an itinerant entertainer, particularly one with a solo act.

I understand this is not the first production of this show, which has been revised and expanded. There is still yet more room for improvement, but as it is, this is a thoughtful, intelligent and intelligible play.

Review by Chris Omaweng

Review number 2 from Eddie!

Chris Sullivan and Shian Denovan

First rehearsal

Here's another review as threatened, I mean, as promised. This time from Chicago Critic dot com.

The 2 Sides Of Eddie Ramone

 July 28, 2016 Tom Williams

By Chris Sullivan

 jMp Company

 Directed by Chris Sullivan

 Jermyn Street Theatre

 16b Jermyn Street, Piccadilly Circus, Lon SW1Y 6ST

 Monday 25th – Saturday 30th July 7.30pm; Saturday 3.30pm

 Running time 75minutes with no intermission                               

You’re Cruisin’, Eddie, Aren’t You?

There’s a strange frankness about Chris Sullivan’s alter ego, as he takes his place at the mike to deliver his cruise comedian’s shtick. I say strange because it soon becomes apparent that what, to his audience, is an accomplished and entertaining stand-up performance, has become to him, a hateful nightly purgatory.

In this day and age, out-of-body experiences have become a staple of psychiatrists, and are not always the weird and slightly frightening conditions so popular with horror film makers. What is different here, is that this is what Eddie finds himself experiencing, without, perhaps, realising that it is what saves him. It is his defence mechanism, enabling him to endlessly keep on churning out the same tired old gags, without blowing his brains out.

This is the second incarnation of The 2 Sides Of Eddie Ramone that I have seen. Previously, at its Edinburgh festival outing, it was Eddie on his own with his demons, and I was moved to write: ‘With flashes of brilliance, mixing comedy and pathos, and with his original and bitingly powerful writing, the redoubtable Chris Sullivan’s performance is his most memorable to date’. He has lost none of this winning emotional cocktail. This version of the play now features Shian Denovan, who plays his daughter, in a beautifully delivered and felt performance.

Whether this two-hander development is the last version of this piece, remains to be seen. What is clear, though, is that the story deserves to go on.

I look forward to the next time, Chris and Eddie!

Saul Reichlin

www.chicagocritic.com

Another Eddie Review 2

I am being very lazy and I am putting up another review - there are about five (I think) and I'll put one up each day till they're done. This one is from an online mag called Remotegoat which reviews plays etc:

Review of The two sides of Eddie Ramone

"play performed with uncanny reality" by Aline Waites for remotegoat on 27/07/16

Eddie Ramone is a comedian, rather past his best. He has played London New York Las Vegas in his career, now he is appearing at a pub somewhere.

His jokes may be a bit old, but he tells them with his usual assurance.

At first, we think Chris Sullivan is playing himself or someone with a similar life pattern. Then we realise that this is a well written play, performed with uncanny reality by the author.

The play starts in low key with Sullivan as Eddie doing a stand up with very little response from the audience. He breaks off to start telling of his real life – so different from the one he is presenting to the audience. He tells of his devoted wife and his beloved daughter = a beautiful girl who he has put through drama school at Bristol to get her acting diploma, introduced her to influential friends to get her work in theatre and eventually taking her to Hollywood where she gets a role in a sitcom. Shian Denovan, as the girl herself appears to tell her own story ~The two never meet on stage but each is spotlighted in turn as they tell their version of the truth. The story gathers emotional momentum as the story is gradually revealed And the revelation is surprising and unexpected.

It is an interesting way to tell a story and it is excellently performed by the two actors.

What is very strange for me as audience and reviewer is to watch this play in the presence of the author's real life wife and daughter who are entirely difference from the ones portrayed in the play.

It is directed by the author and performed with one microphone on a bare set with minimal settings.

This is a fascinating way to build a story and is extremely effective – I hope and expect this production to go further.