Mischief Theatre’s side-splitting Olivier Award-nominated seasonal comedy, Peter Pan Goes Wrong, is heading to BBC One this Christmas.
Co-written by company members Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer and Henry Shields, the farcical stunt-filled, chaos-driven and mishap-packed production is to head from stage to screen this winter, coinciding with its second West End run at the Apollo Theatre. Official London Theatre labelled last year’s show as “energetic, silly and downright hilarious… two hours of pure comic bliss.”
With the BBC filming the company’s amateur moniker, The Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society, “as part of its commitment to community theatre”, the rather unorthodox production of the beloved festive tale is set to appear on screens nationwide.
Recorded in front of a live audience, the show promises to see Peter Pan fly through the air, Captain Hook rule the lagoon, and Tinkerbell light up the stage… if they can avoid technical hitches, wire mishaps and cast disputes along the way to Neverland. Expect hilarious, disastrous results.
Of the announcement, Chris Sussman, Head of Comedy at BBC Studios, said: “Peter Pan Goes Wrong was one of the funniest shows I’ve ever seen in the theatre, and I’m thrilled we’ve got the chance to bring it to BBC One.
“Terrifying stunts, a revolving stage and a cast who’ve never done TV before. What could possibly go wrong?”
Mischief Theatre added: “We are quite staggered at the success of the simply disastrous stage shows this company keeps putting on and hope that their attempt at television doesn’t ruin the nation’s festive cheer!”
For a company made famous for productions going wrong, it seems that plenty continues to go right for the group, with Peter Pan Goes Wrong set to become one of three Mischief Theatre shows in the West End this Christmas. It joins their other recent smash-hits: the Olivier Award-winning The Play That Goes Wrong at the Duchess Theatre, and spectacular new show, The Comedy About A Bank Robbery, at the Criterion Theatre.