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Cold forces Joan Collins out of Birmingham panto
Wednesday 22nd December 2010, 3:13PM GMT.
Hollywood superstar Joan Collins has pulled out of tonight’s performance of Dick Whittington at Birmingham Hippodrome due to illness.
Organisers said the Dynasty star, who plays Queen Rat in the pantomime, has a cold and flu.
In a statement Jonathan Kiley, director of Qdos Pantomime, said: “Our Queen Rat, Joan Collins has not escaped the colds and flu sweeping pantoland and will have to stay in her hotel today to recover.
“We therefore announce that Joan Collins will not appear in Dick Whittington at Birmingham Hippodrome today.
“We wish her well and hope for a speedy recovery.
“We are delighted to confirm that the performances will go ahead as scheduled.
” The role of Queen Rat will be taken by Birmingham-born Wayne Fitzsimmons.”
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I was at this afternoon’s performance with my two daughters and was not at all happy. Ms Collins may well have been ill (although she doesn’t strike me as the sort to tough it out gamely) but that is not the issue.
The stand-in was a bad joke. He clearly was completely unfamiliar with the show and had to be on stage searching his way through a tatty copy of the script. They might as well have got someone from the audience. This may well have not been his fault of course. The rest of the cast continued as if nothing was untoward, delivering ‘Dynasty’ jokes to some anonymous bloke from Birmingham. Hilarious.
One of my daughters was in a pantomime (Dick Whittington funnily enough) just last week that was in a local church hall in front of 150 people at a charge of £5 a head. If they can have adequate understudies prepared then I fail to see why such a historic venue as the Hippodrome, only too quick to promote it’s brilliance, should fail so abjectly and with such contempt for the audience who had each paid a handsome price for the ‘privilege’ of such an amateurish spectacle. Not good enough.
To be fair, Keith Harris and Julian Clary in particular did give very good performances.
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What a let down!
I could not agree more with the above comments. Three of us attended the evening performance of Dick Whittington yesterday after travelling in the snow from Coventry. We had obtained our tickets well in advance to ensure we were able to book good seats and were very disappointed to find out, once seated, that Ms Collins would not be performing.
The rest of the cast did seem to do their best but it was all very flat, on both sides of the curtain. Perhaps, under the circumstances, Qdos Entertainment should have had a contingency plan in case of illness.
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Like to see you step in as an understudy with a few hours notice. You clearly do not understand that an understudy this early in the run would only just have started U/S rehearsals. They always work off book for at least the 1st/2nd show. If u want to blame anyone, blame Joan or the production co, not the poor brave guy trying to put on a show for you. If you are this spoilt, my heart bleeds for your AM/Dram daughter! Prat!!
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“THE MYSTERIES CASE OF MISS COLLINS AND THE MISSING UNDERSTUDY”.
Along with ten members of my family, five recently arrived from San Francisco we struggled through the snow and ice to see this very disappointing charade.
No one can blame the young man who valiantly tried to fill Joan Collins shoes, I am sure he did his very best in the circumstances and was to be admired for his pluck.
But WHY was he put in this position wandering up and down the stage with a TATTY Script hopelessly out of his depth in this appalling show. Offering comic remarks that hit the stage with a DULL THUD.
Where was the UNDERSTUDY, I DO NOT accept that in a PROFESSIONAL production no one had been assigned this roll and why on earth was a YOUNG MAN chosen to fill the role of a WOMAN in her SEVENTIES.
The audience should have been told in the foyer of Miss Collins illness and been allowed the chance to rebook or have their money returned should they so chose.
I would also take issue with GILLIAN and her final remarks towards another disappointed patron. Personal abuse aimed at someone who clearly had a perfect right to complain about this disappointing show helps no one and merely negates the thrust of her own opinion.
Please do not think think we represent a whinging minority a friend took 17 members of her family to see the same unhappy event and was equally disappointed.
The ticket prices for many are a large commitment at Christmas time especially in today’s economic climate and little thought seems to have given to the paying public by The Birmingham Hippodrome.
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