Историческая комедия о Генрихе VIII и его горничном с глубоким подтекстом утраты выходит в Плимуте

An historical comedy which nonetheless deals with sadness and bereavement will be staged at Plymouth’s Barbican Theatre this week. And who better to write it and star in it than a history teacher? And one who knows only too well the heartbreak of losing a child. Greg Winders is the comic tour-de-force behind Liskeard-based OMF Theatre, which is bringing Henry VIII and his Groom: A Comedy Drama About Friendship and Loss to Britain’s Ocean City after a run at the world famous Edinburgh Fringe where it was praised by Theatre and Arts Reviews and The Scotsman, which highlighted its poignancy.. “Henry VIII and his Groom is a hilarious and moving new play that explores the unlikely friendship between King Henry VIII and his Groom of the Stool William Compton,” said Greg. “Set in the opulent world of the Tudor court, this play offers a unique perspective on the complexities of power, loyalty, and grief. Toilet humour has never been so sophisticated or heart breaking. “As Henry grapples with the loss of his children, he finds solace in the company of his loyal servant, Will. “Their conversations, often centred around the mundane task of wiping the king's bottom, evolve into a deep and meaningful bond as he breaks into the king we love to hate.” OMF Theatre is run by Greg, with the OM standing for “one man”. He said it offers “The philosophy of one person - you, all you need to create and showcase”. Greg is a history teacher at Penrice Academy in St Austell but went to college from 1999 in Plymouth, and then studied at Marjon University Plymouth. “I was also part of the Barbican Theatre's youth programmes in 2000 so to be performing my own show there is something of a homecoming,” he said. “I was also head of History at Stoke Damerel Community College for six years - otherwise I'm a proud Cornish northerner.” Greg added: “On a very personal story I got the Stoke job shortly after losing our first child, and we lost our second in the city of Plymouth where we also welcomed our two children we still have with us. “I only mention this as the play focuses on Henry's relationship with his bathroom attendant and so is a toilet humour-based comedy where he also experiences multiple infant losses which fundamentally shape the king he eventually becomes. “The play is therefore an exploration of grief through historical comedy. I wanted to create a piece that helped people, particularly men, with this often hidden grief. Henry VIII and his Groom stars Greg and Plymouth actor Tony Bligh and Greg said: “Tony is amazing and the relationship of the two characters is the heartbeat of the piece.” He said OMF makes “budget free” theatre and said: “Anything can be made for nothing, it's a question of imagination. “I'm a writer first and foremost and acted because I wanted my stuff made. So we're good but have no machine behind us and probably never will.” Previous shows have included From Midlife Crisis of David Cockington, which played at Theatre Royal Plymouth’s The Lab in 2018,; and Apocalypse Kernow, which also featured at Edinburgh Fringe. For Barmy Nonsense, which started during the Covid pandemic, “hundreds of writers and actors, some famous faces too” sent in sketches for a radio sketch comedy. “We made two series of this with Liskeard Radio helping us on the technical side of things,” said Greg. “The Ofsted Hogwarts sketch I wrote which won National BBC Upload for that year. It was BBC Radio Cornwall's entry for the national programme. “We have also had a Christmas show - Santa Versus The People - doing shows at Christmas for the past couple of years, a radio play-style comedy about Amazon and Jeff Bezos taking Christmas away from Santa. “It played recently with Michael Terry and my dad Stephen Winders who has been in all the shows except this latest one.” Henry VIII and his Groom: A Comedy Drama About Friendship and Loss is at the Barbican Theatre on Friday, September 11, from 7.30pm. For information and tickets: www.barbicantheatre.co.uk/whats-on/henry-viii-his-groom Click here to join PlymouthLive on WhatsApp and we'll send breaking news and top stories directly to your phone. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.