When We Are Married - Altrincham Garrick

CAROLE Carr’s perfectly paced production, performed by a gifted cast who gel beautifully together, is period comedy at its very best.

While the subject matter of Priestley’s classic wouldn’t raise an eyebrow today - three self-proclaimed pillars of their community may not be officially married after all - you have to view the piece through nostalgic eyes in order to appreciate it.

The piece takes us back to a north of England that’s long been consigned to the history books, to a time when if you came from another part of the country you may as well have come from another planet.

Some of the dialogue sounds silly to 21st century ears but the majority of it is sublime.

It seems unfair to single out individual performances for the simple reason there aren’t any weak ones in a production that is amateur only in name.

Geoff Holman is great fun as the local newspaper photographer Henry Ormonroyd and I equally enjoyed Hugh Everett as the downtrodden Herbert Soppitt. Then there was Alison Davis, an actress who is always a pleasure to watch as the formidable housekeeper Mrs Northrop and a performer who is new to me, Georgia Geupel, as Ruby Birtle, the housemaid struggling to make sense of the chaos that unfolds in the Heliwell household.

Lindsey Barker also caught my attention as the oh so worldly Lottie Grady, so convincing as a woman who has been around the block on many, many occasions.

Personally I can’t think of a better antidote to these dark, dank November nights. Highly recommended. A must see for anyone with a sense of humour.

Until November 9. The box office is on 0161 928 1677. Star rating - ****