Plays by David Farn

Synopsis

This is the story of how, in the year 2000, an unnamed Royal Prince, on an official visit to the North East, slips his body guard and goes walkabout in Sunderland. There he meets a local girl, Tracy, from a council estate, and they have a night of … well, we’ll draw a veil over that. But in the morning, Tracy doesn’t want her Prince to leave. And neither does her strange, silent brother, Lenny.

Meanwhile, down on his luck tabloid photographer, Jeff, has got wind of this unlikely romance and has come to Sunderland to get his Big Picture. He’s staying across the street from where the action is, and where a Press siege has got the Prince cornered. However, Jeff’s fierce landlady, Brenda, is exploiting the situation for all it’s worth. Then, as the siege drags on, Brenda softens towards her lodger, who brings a breath of something new to her bleak life.

The Big Picture is a hilarious and touching look at what happens when our romantic dreams collide with harsh reality.

A note: It would be treasonable to say that this Prince-and-the-Pauper story is a true one. Why wasn’t it all over the news at the time, you may well ask? Well, sometimes embarrassing stories like this get hushed up.

But here’s a thing. In the year 2000, the then Queen Elizabeth and the rest of the Royal family all declined the offer of free tickets to the opening night of the original production of the play. Need we say more?

The Characters

Jeff

A freelance tabloid photographer, up from London and down on his luck. He’s in his forties and divorced. Always a gambler and a drinker, a charmer who lives on his wits, Jeff senses that this stakeout might provide the Big Picture he has been searching for: a money-making Royal bonanza.

Brenda Stone

Also in her forties, Brenda has had a hard life with a demanding, disabled husband and wayward son, and it shows in her unsmiling face and harsh, unsympathetic manner. She lives on a council estate and is a cleaner at the local pub. But the arrival of Jeff, who seems to come from another place – a world of celebrity photographs – awakens a gentler side to her nature.

The Prince

Aged around eighteen. The endless parade of Royal duties hangs heavy on this spirited young man, and he chafes against them. On an official visit to open a new hospital wing in the North East, he slips his bodyguard and, incognito, goes for a night on the town. During which excursion he meets Tracy. But going AWOL has consequences. Plus, the Prince has a secret, which the Family don’t want him to divulge.

Tracy Watson

The same age as the Prince, Tracy has had an impoverished life on a Sunderland council estate and works in a shoe shop. But that hasn’t stopped her from dreaming of better things. A modern Cinderella, for years she has followed the adventures of the Prince, keeping a scrapbook of his doings. And now, while on a visit to her home town, he has singled her out for a night of passion. But will the shoe fit?

Lenny Watson

In his twenties. Brother to Tracy, he has shared her bleak, loveless life. Perhaps it is this that has made him speechless: a silent, intimidating presence? In any event, he is no lover of the Royals, and in fact harbours Republican sympathies, which come into play when the Prince unexpectedly falls into his hands. And yet, inside Lenny’s threatening exterior, Brenda thinks she may have the key to a lost, gentler nature.

The Setting

Half of the play is set in the bedroom of a council house in the North East, where Brenda lives. The other half of the play is in a similar room: Tracy’s bedroom, on the same estate. They are, in some ways, mirror images of each other, and the action switches between the two rooms. In the original production, this was achieved with a simple composite set and lighting changes. The time is the year 2000, when the Prince was a very eligible young man.

Previous Performance

The Big Picture was first produced in 2000 by The Customs House, South Shields.

Thanks to Ray Spencer and all the staff at The Customs House, South Shields. The Shields Gazette for help with publicity and props. Also Shiela Graeber.

Reviews

The idea behind the play is fresh and new … it’s fun and up-to-date and will
keep even the most miserable people with a smile on their face.

Leah Shaw, South Shields Gazette