Theatre Review: ‘Quiz’ (2023 UK Tour)

Starring: Rory Bremner, Charley Webb, Lewis Reeves, Mark Benton

Creator/Writer: James Graham

Director: Daniel Evans and Seán Linnen

Date/Year: 2023

Quiz is a play based on one of most infamous moments in UK gameshow history. Whilst appearing on the televised Who Wants To Be A Millionaire quiz show in 2001, Major Charles Ingram won the top prize of one million pounds. A moment for celebration right? From the start the production team were convinced that Ingram was cheating; courtesy of some strategic coughing from his friends in the audience to guide him to the correct answers. But is that what really happened…?

Rather than showcase the events chronologically, Quiz began at the end of story – with the trial of Charles (Lewis Reeves), his wife Diana (Charley Webb), and their supposed accomplice Tecwen Whittock (Marc Antolin). Act One followed the Prosecution’s case against the trio. As the evidence was presented, the witnesses recreated past events on stage (rather than simply telling us what happened). This all culminated in Ingram’s appearance on Millionaire.

*Lewis Reeves & Charley Webb as Charles & Diana Ingram. Image Credit: Newcastle Theatre Royal*

For the Act Two it was the Defence’s turn. Again witnesses were called and events recreated. Some of the events were new but others were near repeats of sections we saw in the Act One – only this time we were asked to consider them from a new point of view. For example in the first act we saw a staff member overhearing part of an argument between the Ingrams and her reaction to it however, in the second act, we saw an extended version of this scene only now from the Ingrams perspective which altered what we originally thought they were arguing about.

Despite the court’s ruling, there is still much debate on whether the Ingrams and Whittock cheated or not. Quiz did not offer an opinion of its own. Instead it simply presented two different versions of what might have happened and allowed the audience to come to their own conclusion.

Of course a play is nothing without its cast. The duo of Lewis Reeves and Charley Webb worked well together as Charles and Diana Ingram. Whether in the foreground or background, the pair were rarely off stage and they did a great job as the core characters of the story. Impressionist Rory Bremner did a sterling turn as Millionaire presenter Chris Tarrant, capturing not just Tarrant’s voice but his mannerisms as well. Renowned actor Mark Benton got some of the biggest laughs of the night as he transformed into a variety of characters including cunning quiz-exploiter-of-rules Paddy Spooner and energetic ITV director David Liddiment.

I must also mention Quiz’s superb supporting cast. Danielle Henry and Leo Wringer brought the two sharp-minded QCs to life, who battled to win the audience to their side. Marc Antolin, Sukh Ojla, Jay Taylor, and Stefan Adegbola all played several characters; with everyone having their share of brilliant scene stealing moments. Special shoutout to Ojla who played an impressive seven distinctive characters.

For the staging, the technical and creative team behind Quiz found a simple yet effective method of storytelling. The centre of the stage was left open for the flashback re-enactments however there was also enough space to position the iconic Millionaire gameshow chairs when required. At the back of the stage were two sections of curved benches which operated as seating areas for both the courtroom and Millionaire scenes, and as a bar during the flashback pub quiz scenes.

As I had hoped, Quiz also had an interactive element. We, the audience, served as both the courtroom jury and Millionaire audience. We were all given gamepads prior to the start of the show and there were opportunities to vote throughout the play – most notably to decide whether we thought the Ingrams were guilty or not. The gamepads were a fun addition but, for a play that relied so much on audience engagement, I only wish there had been more opportunities to use them and play along further with the story.

Although I was familiar with the real-life story of ‘The Coughing Major’, I had no idea how it would translate as a theatre play. Needless to say I was completely impressed with the whole production. It was a very entertaining night out and I would definitely recommend seeing it should the play come to a theatre near you.

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