The Last Laugh is final curtain call for Britain’s comedy kings.
At the Noël Coward theatre on Wednesday night, I witnessed a rare West End phenomenon: a standing ovation. The curtain call hadn’t even begun when a pleased audience of theatre goers and critics stood and joined their hands in a thunderous roar of applause for The Last Laugh. As I exited the circle after the show, I heard an older gentleman behind me recount to his friends, “I cried my eyes out. It’s so nostalgic.” This theme of nostalgia bolstered by the show’s three-stars’ exquisite performances make The Last Laugh a feel-good spectacle for young and old audiences alike.
The Last Laugh, written and directed by Paul Hendy, imagines a night in which famous English comics Eric Morecambe, Bob Monkhouse, and Tommy Cooper are thrown together in a grimy dressing room as they prepare for an unspecified performance. The show looks at what would happen if these three comedy legends had gotten together and explored their own comedic influences. In the same way that Hendy idolises these protagonists as pillars of the British comedy tradition, Cooper, Monkhouse, and Morecambe discuss their own comedy influences, inspired by their dressing room décor.
The entirety of The Last Laugh takes place in the theatre’s dressing room. It has three vanities, one for each comedian. While Monkhouse and Morecambe’s dressing tables begin empty, Cooper’s is chalked full of his notorious props even before the play begins. The show opens with news audio about the comedians and their deaths; the dressing room lights flicker until finally Tommy Cooper, played by Damian Williams, is stood alone on stage in his underwear. As he begins to get ready, he is joined in the dressing room by Monkhouse (Simon Cartwright) followed by Morecambe (Bob Golding), and the play takes off.
This work, which has transferred to the West End from the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, is truly an homage to these three stars. The script is filled with references to the real-life comedian’s acts and how they have been remembered by fans and critics. For example, great attention is given to Bob Monkhouse’s prowess as a “gag” writer as compared to his lesser reputation as a stand-up comic relative to his work as a gameshow host. Though Ernie Wise is not a character in The Last Laugh, much is made about Eric Morecambe’s career in a double act and his musical comedy. Naturally, Cooper steals the show with his physical comedy, failed magic tricks, and infamous chuckle. Though this is a play that has very little action, the pacing does not drag. When the comedians demonstrate their “gags” for each other, the audience is given brief respite from dialogue and is transported to a stand-up comedy show.
In addition to being a tribute to the work of these comedians, The Last Laugh aims to ask a deeper question, one that is applicable to all performing artists: “What do we do it for?” What drove these men to pursue comedy to the determent of their health and personal well-being?
While the show is ripe with recognisable moments of their comedy, it also looks beyond the facade into the darker corners of their lives. In discussing what American comedians refer to as “bombing” on stage (failing to be funny), these comics refer to it as “dying a death”, a term that is metaphorically and literally apt. Famously, Tommy Cooper who suffered from alcoholism died from a heart-attack on live television. The audience, believing it was a part of his act, laughed as he collapsed. In an eerily similar fashion, Eric Morecambe also passed away from a heart-attack that he suffered after stepping off stage at the end of a show. Monkhouse lived much longer than the other two, ultimately passing away from prostate cancer, yet he faced much tragedy in his personal life.
While the show recognises these darker elements of Monkhouse, Morecambe, and Cooper’s lives, it does not fall into the trap of self-pity or misery porn. Rather it aims to emphasise the joy that these men brought to the world without ignoring who they are in their full, imperfect, humanity. The specificity in the script and prop selection makes the audience feel as though these real-life comics are in the room with us. I was never distracted by the notion of the actor’s performances as “impersonation.” These details act as little presents to fans who remember these comedians well, and as gateways to their work for younger audiences who may be less familiar. The Last Laugh is only in London for a 4-week engagement, so if you’re looking for an easy watch that will make your heart sing, get your tickets before it’s too late.