Good Fun is a play by

Victoria Wood Victoria Wood (19 May 1953 – 20 April 2016) was an English comedian, actress, musician, screenwriter, and director. Wood wrote and starred in dozens of sketches, plays, musicals, films and sitcoms over several decades, and her live comedy act ...

, first performed in 1980. It is set in an

Arts Centre An art centre or arts center is distinct from an art gallery or art museum. An arts centre is a functional community centre with a specific remit to encourage arts practice and to provide facilities such as theatre space, gallery space, venues fo ...

North West England North West England is one of nine official regions of England and consists of the ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial counties of Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside. The North West had a population of 7,4 ...

Origins

Wood, keen to trade on her previous stage success '' Talent'', was commissioned to write another play by impresario Michael Codron. "I wrote one called ''Pals'', which he said was 'very enjoyable'. This is a euphemism for wincing, so it went in the bin. I then wrote another called ''Good Fun''."

Performance

The play was first performed in April 1980 at

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, situated south of Leeds and east of Manchester. The city is the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and some of its so ...

Crucible Theatre The Crucible Theatre, or simply The Crucible, is a theatre in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which opened in 1971. Its name refers to crucible steel, which was developed in Sheffield in 1740 and drove the industrialisation of the city. ...

. It was directed by

David Leland David Leland (20 April 1941 – 24 December 2023) was a British film director, screenwriter and actor who came to international fame with his directorial debut ''Wish You Were Here'' in 1987. Life and career Leland initially trained as an ac ...

. It starred

Annabel Leventon Judith Annabel Leventon (born 20 April 1942 in Hertfordshire, England) is an English actress who has acted in various roles on stage and television. While reading English at the University of Oxford she made several appearances at the Oxford Pl ...

as Liz, Charles McKeown as Frank, Gregory Floy as Mike, Victoria Wood as Lynne, Joe Figg as Kev,

Julie Walters Dame Julia Mary Walters (born 22 February 1950), known professionally as Julie Walters, is an English actress. She is the recipient of four British Academy Television Awards, two British Academy Film Awards, two International Emmy Awards, a Go ...

as Betty,

Noreen Kershaw Noreen Kershaw (born 16 October 1950) is an English television actress and director. She trained at the Manchester Polytechnic School of Theatre and Liverpool's Everyman Theatre, originated the title role of the play '' Shirley Valentine'', l ...

as Gail and Christopher Hancock as Maurice. The show was then performed at The Crucible Theatre again in June that year with some cast changes. Polly James played Liz,

Sam Kelly Roger Michael Kelly (19 December 1943 – 14 June 2014), known by the stage name Sam Kelly, was an English actor who appeared in film, television, radio and theatre. He is best known for his roles as Captain Hans Geering in Allo 'Allo!'', ...

played Frank and Meg Johnson played Betty. After The Crucible's second version, the plan was to transfer the play to the West End. Though this never happened, it was performed at the King's Head Theatre in

Islington Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...

. Wood said she heard a man at the interval saying "It's a bit witty witty isn't it?" Wood's view of the play was that "there was an awful lot wrong with it but there were some lovely performances and the audiences enjoyed it." After ''Good Fun'' Wood concentrated on television comedy and her career as a stand up comic. Though she did write two more plays "which to save bothering Michael Codron, I called 'very enjoyable' and put straight in the bin."

Reviews

Robin Thurber of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' said "''Good Fun'' is just that... full of knowing little laughs. Dry laughs, belly laughs, dirty laughs and running giggles".

James Fenton James Martin Fenton (born 25 April 1949) is an English poet, journalist and literary critic. He is a former Oxford Professor of Poetry. Life and career Born in Lincoln, Fenton grew up in Lincolnshire and Staffordshire, the son of Canon Jo ...

of ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...

'' said "pigeon holers will find a space for (Wood) beside

Joe Orton John Kingsley Orton (1 January 1933 – 9 August 1967), known by the pen name of Joe Orton, was an English playwright, author, and diarist. His public career, from 1964 until his murder in 1967 committed by his partner, was short but highly i ...

and

Ken Dodd Sir Kenneth Arthur Dodd (8 November 1927 – 11 March 2018) was an English stand-up comedy, comedian, actor and singer. He was described as "the last great music hall entertainer" and was primarily known for his live stand-up comedy, stand-up pe ...

...But her voice is characteristically and aggressively female. Just like ''Talent''... ''Good Fun''s rude words, hilarious gags and the insights which are more varied than either are all in the mouths of the women at its centre."

Song List

Act One: *Liz's Song *Community Arts *I've Had It Up To Here *Turned Out Nice Again Act Two: *Make A Joke *Handicrafts *Frank and Gail Duet *I'll Do Anything *Bloody Clowns *Good Fun Wood, Victoria Wood (1988). Good Fun & Talent (1st ed.). London: Methuen. .

References

{{Victoria Wood 1980 plays Plays by Victoria Wood