Wallop Mrs Cox goes down a treat

Wallop Mrs Cox

Birmingham Hippodrome

Hundreds of amateur dramatic fans packed into Birmingham's Hippodrome to see the Bull Ring-based musical Wallop Mrs Cox.

The production, involving a 70-strong cast, was set in and around the Bull Ring markets and was a joint venture between the Hippodrome and BMOS Musical Theatre.

Heart Breakfast DJ Ed James narrated the play and introduced the protagonist Emily Cox, through whose eyes the musical, and 100 years of Brummagem history, was told.

The performance opened with Mrs Cox as a young lady, who was played by the first of five actresses to take the lead in the form of Lucy Ganss. The entire company meanwhile launched into the play's signature tune 'Hello Bull Ring'.

The lyrics focussed on the variety of stalls at the heart of the forum and moved swiftly from having 'cures for this and that' to the fishmonger 'leaving the head on for the cat'.

And it was the market itself which provided the setting for the majority of the play, and the romance which underpinned the musical, as the audience met Lenny Cox at his fruit and veg stall.

The whirlwind love affair between Lenny and Emily Cox showed as they were married in the middle of the duet, called 'After We've Lived', that marked their first meeting.

The audience began to warm to the character of Mrs Cox when she first showed her loyalty to Lenny by kneeing a 'Peaky Blinder', or gangster character, in the groin after he tried to intimidate the couple.

Lenny meanwhile expressed his own feelings by confirming the way to a man's heart is through his stomach as he waxed lyrical about Mrs Cox's local recipes in the number 'Redfern's Tripe'.

The Second World War, and conscription, however split the pair with Lenny's death before Act Two. Videos in the background of the stage meanwhile showed footage of Neville Chamberlain, former Birmingham Mayor, returning from Germany with Adolf Hitler's false promise of 'peace in our time'.

The sadness of Lenny's death allowed for the undercurrent of gallows humour to flow in the play, which was clear in the baudy song 'The Back of Rackhams', about sons Eric and Eddie Cox's first lovers.

Not only were Brummie landmarks mentioned throughout, but also the lingo had the limelight in the ensemble's rendition of 'A Face As Long As Livery Street'.

And the musical was brought up to date in Mrs Cox's final soliloquy as she bemoaned the loss of factories in BSA, Lucases and Kraft's takeover of Cadburys, which would mean a switch from Dairy Milk to Dairylea, she said.

The popularity of the musical showed as loud applause, cheers and whistles greeted the company's final number 'Birmingham' and the cast's final bows.

By Alex Homer.