Lloyd Evans Lloyd Evans

Cheesy remake of Our Mutual Friend: London Tide, at the Lyttelton Theatre, reviewed

Plus: some American trash that's been mislabelled ‘drama’ arrives at the Almeida Theatre

One of the catwalk paupers: Bella Maclean as Bella Wilfer in London Tide, the National’s adaptation of Our Mutual Friend. Credit: Marc Brenner 
issue 27 April 2024

Our Mutual Friend has been turned into a musical with a new title, London Tide, which sounds duller and more forgettable than the original. Why change the name? To confuse fans of Dickens, presumably, and to keep the theatre half-empty while heaps of tickets are sold at a discount.

At the end of Act One, an actor explains the entire plot.

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