One Act Comedy Plays (2)

Comedy (H-P)


	Half A Crown by Jane Lockyer Willis (3m, 3f) 20-25 mins Princess Maud has had enough of royal life and leaves the palace to become a secretary to a firm of solicitors. But try as she may, she cannot rid herself of her crown and royal ways. When she finally succeeds in casting off a very physical tie to her past, an unexpected event compels Maud to review her decision.

	Heads You Lose! by Paul Reakes (2m, 6f) 50 mins The discovery of a headless corpse in a small country town is bound to cause quite a stir. For Emily and Rose it is the main topic of conversation as they go about their work in the local charity shop. Rose suggests that ‘the killer’ might be someone they know. And what has happened to the head? Why is timid Mr Mills acting so strangely? And what grisly secret does the old hat box contain? A play with its fair share of suspense and laughter.

	Heaven's Above by Diana Raffle (2m, 2f) 45 mins Sally is dead. Finding herself at the gates of Heaven with a depressive and an ageing tennis player, she struggles to first disprove her demise and second to beg for another chance. Eventually, a clerical error made by a very overstretched celestial admin department gives her back the life that she realises she so desperately wants; however it’s not without its twist! This is a comedy; easy to cast with a minimum set and great acting parts.

	House Proud by Paul Adam Levy (2m, 3f, 1m/f) 50 mins Tenants become pitted against each other as a row breaks out over what should be acceptable in a house in modern day Britain. It’s a comedy about the Leave and Remain Brexit campaigns. With five strong comic characters and a simple set, House Proud makes a perfect one-act satire that doesn’t take political sides and is written to remain relevant.

	It’s Not The Same Without Norman by Jane Lockyer Willis (2m, 2f) 25 mins approx What do Joseph, an upmarket stable and the Christmas Star have in common with a housewife, an errant husband and a friend who can't cook meringues? See what happens when Bethlehem comes to suburbia. Set in present day England, this is a quirky, one act comedy for the Christmas season.

	Last Bus To Whitby by Martin Roche (1m) 40 mins ‘Big Al’ is taking a bus journey to Whitby, a journey he has waited his whole life to take. A play about resonance and honesty with oneself; about finding peace. It explores in a gentle, funny, innocent, sincere and bygone way, how happiness and self-fulfilment do not, for some, require other people or wealth to make them a reality. They just need a bus ticket.

	Let's Be 'Avin' You! by Geoff Buckingham (3m, 5f, 1m/f) 45 mins With the Police Station under threat of closure, the future there looks bleak; however, the country's most notorious criminal gang have moved onto the patch, and the stoic, but less than competent policemen, vow both to fight the crime wave, and to keep the police station open. Somehow they manage to stumble their way through to victory, but not without the help of the spinsters of the Ladies Knitting Circle.

	Licensed To Thrill by Simon Rayner Davis (8m, 6f) 50 mins (approx) Stan Dandy-Liver, the Chief Inspector of OFSTED (no, not that one) and the criminal gang NORTEE’s primary target has been taken hostage by their arch criminal rivals, the NICE gang right under the noses of M-Hi-5. It is up to Jimmy Blond , M-Hi-5s top Agent, to see if he can rescue Stan Dandy-Liver, who, if the traces of information can be believed, is somewhere in the Scottish Glens with a pair of Scottish Glenns…

	Living Doll by Ann Gawthorpe & Lesley Bown (1m, 2f) 45 mins His mother’s death frees 39-year-old Kevin for a belated adolescence of football, takeaways and general slobbishness. Unfortunately Aunty Iris wants him to marry her Melanie. When a blow-up life-size doll from 1959 found in his parent's belongings comes to life and starts to nag as well, Kevin finds himself having to contend with two women determined to stop him enjoying himself.

	Look Into My Eyes by Ron Hutson (2m, 2f) Approx 40 mins This is a topical one-act play, a comedy, about identity theft. Dennis and Bill share a flat and Dennis` girlfriend is into aromatherapy. She has just learned how to hypnotise and offers to try it out on Bill who scoffs at the idea but consents with unusual results which astound them all.

	Losing It by Derek Webb (1m, 1f) 45 mins Jack is an actor who's lost for words. Now he's also lost his leading lady – and the way things are going, he's also losing the plot and he feels he might be on the verge of losing his mind too. Things start off well enough until it's clear that Jack's other actor has not turned up. His attempt to keep the play going soon gets too much for one member of the audience who begins remonstrating with him then gets sucked into appearing in the play herself...

	Man's View by Derek Webb (1m, 3f) Three women, Carol, Ann and Judy, are having a reunion in a wine bar one evening. It’s the first time they’ve been together since leaving school. Carol is keen to impress the others. She is married to a successful publisher. What she fails to disclose is that he is a publisher of porn magazines. As more drink is consumed, secrets they have kept hidden for years emerge with disastrous consequences.

	Mary Christmas by Nick Wilkes (2f) 60 mins Where is the centre of Great Britain? The big British island, the one with Scotland at the top. If you had a cardboard cut-out of it, where could you balance it on a pencil’s point? One woman knows, and this Christmas she’s going there. She’s going there alone. Mary Christmas, a seasonal comedy drama of life’s endings, and new beginnings.

	More Tea, Vicar? by Geoff Buckingham (2m, 8f, 1m/f) 40-45 mins The Church in Botchington needs a new roof, but has no funds, so the bumbling committee of St Cedric's decide to organise a garden party and invite the leading morality campaigner and philanthropist, Lady Porchester, in the hope that she’ll make a sizeable donation to the roof fund. However. the Vicar's attempt to impress her with an announcement of his intended marriage backfires rather badly.

	Mr Perfect by Alan Richardson (1m, 2f) 35 mins Fashion conscious and career driven, Liz has everything she wants... except a man. Her lifestyle demands the best, so why should she settle for less than Mr Perfect? Does he exist or is she chasing fantasy? A wickedly irreverent glimpse at the beguiling world of blind dates, personal ads, introduction agencies and single clubs

	Murder At The Cathedral by Ron Nicol (3m, 3f) 40-45 mins Henry King is furious that his Cathedral Players haven’t won anything at any drama festival since the defection of leading actor Tom Becket to the rival Priest’s Gate Drama Club three years ago. If things don’t improve, it could be the final curtain for Cathedral. Sally Knight and Toby Barron decide to do something about it, and Tom Becket disappears. Did Knight and Barron murder the Priest to please King? Is it curtains for Becket?

	Nearly All At Sea by Ron Nicol (3m, 3f, 1m/f) 45-50 mins The second Tall Tale in the nonsensical and hilarious adventures of Victorian explorer Sir Henry Nearly, ‘Nearly All At Sea’ accompanies the hapless pair on a voyage of discovery with Cap’n Codfish and Barnacle the Mate. Unluckily for them, the fabulous island they discover is simply the Isle of Wight, now inhabited by the vindictive Henrietta and irksome Aurora.

	Nearly Pulls It Off by Ron Nicol (3m, 3f, 2m/f) 45-50 mins Victorian explorer Sir Henry Nearly and his associate Mortimer Leeveme set out with incompetent Cap’n Codfish and Barnacle the Mate on a quest to discover the Lost Temple of Howjahdoodah. Followed by Henry’s indomitable wife Henrietta, Mortimer’s sweetly silly wife Aurora and a Tiger who thinks it’s a rug, they manage to find the Lost Temple – or do they?

	Nearly Up A Gum Tree by Ron Nicol (2m, 5f, 1m/f) 45-50 mins The fourth tall tale of Victorian explorer Sir Henry Nearly and his associate Mortimer Leeveme. Henry and Mortimer explore a desolate wilderness that bears a striking resemblance to the shrubbery at the bottom of Henry’s garden. With Henrietta, Aurora, Queenie the cook and Tweenie the maid hot on their trail, they make an unexpected discovery.

	Nearly Up The Pole by Ron Nicol (2m, 3f, 2m/f) 45-50 mins Intrepid adventurer Sir Henry Nearly and his sidekick Mortimer Leeveme set out on a expedition to find the Pole – any Pole. Led by expedition expediter Jules Goudeau (aka as Jessie Boggs) and hampered by husky Rowff, they merely encounter Henry’s indomitable wife Henrietta and his irritating daughter Aurora.

	Not A Penny More! by Geoff Buckingham (5m, 5f) 45-50 mins When a group of hapless ladies in Botchington-on-Sea decide to open a charity shop little did they know of the problems that would arise nor the previous use of the premises. But, with the help of a bumbling police constable they catch a serial murderer, they unearth a valuable treasure and they leave the local vicar dumbfounded as he assumes they are running a brothel with the help of his own wife!

	Now You See Me, Now You Don't by Jane Lockyer Willis (2m, 2f) 20 mins Lionel and Rosemary are a long-married island couple have their portrait of Queen Victoria stolen one night by another islander. The picture has graced a wall in their home for many years and it's loss starts Rosemary bickering about Lionel's 'hallucinations' (he talks to Queen Victoria). When the thief reveals himself, they take the opportunity to consider whether to re-hang or replace the picture (ie a relationship metaphor for 'stay as we are' or 'start anew').

	One In The Eye by Derek Webb (3m, 2f with doubling) 50 mins A cautionary tale of the exploits of Horatio Nelson's less famous and land-locked brother, Maurice Nelson, who has to use all his guile and gusto to keep Emma Hamilton from meeting Fanny Nelson at a grand ball. He plans to distract Emma with a (sort of) VIP, until Fanny leaves…should be simple enough, surely?

	Parent's Evening by Tom Casling (4 jnr-m, 1f) 30 mins Part of a trilogy of plays written in 2010 under the title ‘Generation Gaps’. This, the first, deals with issues of Children 5-11 years of age. The second play ‘Children Of The Revolution’ looked at issue with teenagers, and the third, ‘In Sickness And In Health’, was written as part of a Dementia Awareness Day before the illness was as well-known and understood. ‘Parents Evening’ is a tongue-in-cheek look at how children are tested in school and the rewards we give them as parents for achievement. It looks at this from a child’s perspective.

	Pig Tale by Ron Nicol (1m, 1f, 10m/f) 40-45 mins Multiple Award Winner An updated re-telling of the tale of the Three Little Pigs and the Big Bad Wolf. Mummy Pig throws the Three Little Pigs out into the big wide world to seek their fortunes. They have to cope with the demands of relating to others, gathering materials, building houses, and keeping the Wolf from the door. The Narrator of the story finds s/he has his/her own problems to deal with in the shape of an insufferable Prompter and a wily and wilful Sheep.

	Poor Yorick by Phil Mansell (3m, 2f) 40-45 mins Yorick the jester is not dead – he’s on the road dying a death as he pioneers a new kind of comedy called stand-up. When this fails, he is persuaded by his tavern wench girlfriend Bess to return to Elsinore and get his old job back. But when he arrives he finds there have been many changes, and he becomes embroiled in Hamlet’s plans for revenge.