Whisky Galore (NHB Modern Plays)

By Compton Mackenzie

It's 1955 and the Pallas Players, an all-female theatre company, are putting on a play: Whisky Galore.
They transport us back to 1943 on the Scottish islands of Great and Little Todday, where the whisky supply has dried up because of the war, leaving tensions running high. Relief seems to be at hand when a ship carrying 50,000 bottles of whisky is wrecked just offshore. Then it's every thirsty man for himself as the islanders try to rescue as many bottles as possible before stuffy Captain Waggett of the Home Guard can put a stop to their fun.
Philip Goulding's stage adaptation of Compton Mackenzie's comedy classic is a tribute to the feisty all-female touring theatre companies of the post-war years. First performed in a touring production by Oldham Coliseum Theatre, Hull Truck Theatre and New Vic Theatre, Whisky Galore combines rollicking physical theatre, panto and farce, with an array of hilarious characters for any female-led theatre company.
'Philip Goulding's adaptation retains the authenticity of Mackenzie's mellifluous prose and wittily divvies up twenty-five characters among a hard-working cast of seven. An enjoyably bright and breezy retelling of a classic comic tale' - The Stage
'Captures the absurdity of Mackenzie's story and retains its joyful sense of mischief' - The Reviews Hub

• Language: English
• Publisher: Nick Hern Books
• Release date: Jun 25, 2019
• ISBN: 9781788501910

Book preview

Prologue

A Co-op Hall. 1955.

Six of the Pallas Players enter while the house lights are up. The lights dim and the women finish setting up for Act One. They can pretend that there is a thick curtain between the actors and the audience.

DORIS might discreetly look around the side of this imaginary curtain to observe the ‘house’. The atmosphere is generally relaxed and efficient for all except JULIET, who double-checks everything while studying her script. CONNIE calmly reads a mechanics magazine. AILEEN keeps an eye on the door, acting as lookout. DORIS, BEA and WIN make the final touches to their preparation. Binoculars are very deliberately set. WIN finds Monty’s hat in the bottom of a box, whistles to BEA, then throws it over to her. BEA places the hat. Someone whispers, ‘Who’s first Perce?’¹ It’s JULIET, so she tests the wooden bird-whistle. She’s a novice, so it’s a bit loud. Oops. The bird-whistle is attached by a cord to the set somewhere, to avoid it ever getting mislaid. It probably makes only one sort of call, which has to suffice for all the types of bird we’ll encounter on our tour of the islands. At some point AILEEN moves away swiftly from the door.

AILEEN. Incoming.

Everybody looks lively. FLORA breezes in.

FLORA. We’ve a good house anyway. I’ve been watching them arrive.

DORIS. What are they like?

FLORA. Anyone remember Halifax?²

WIN. Not really, no.

FLORA. Well, they’re like that, only more so. Juliet, dear?

JULIET. Yes, Miss Bellerby?

FLORA. I’m going to do the little speech. They expect a certain standard. We can drop it once that’s reached.

JULIET (disappointed). I understand, Miss Bellerby.

DORIS operates curtain-winder. FLORA steps forward to address the audience.

FLORA. Ladies and gentlemen. We are the Pallas Players and I am Flora Bellerby. Some of you may be aware that we have recently suffered the loss of Barbara Temple, a stalwart member of the company and one of our most popular performers, especially with some of you chaps. Barbara contracted what we first imagined was food poisoning during our week’s residency at Whitehaven. As it turned out, her condition was entirely unrelated to the paucity of vitamins in Cumberland, being due instead to a rogue element picked up in Goole. Diminished as we are without Barbara’s attributes, we hope all will go well for her at the Mission of Hope Maternity Hostel in Hove. Meanwhile, we’re delighted to introduce, as her replacement, our enthusiastic ingénue, Miss Juliet Mainwaring.

FLORA gestures to JULIET, who bows.

Juliet only caught up with us three days hence, and has been cramming ever since, so we ask that you overlook any teething troubles, as we make-do-and-mend. Should we fall short, we hope that you’ll bear with us – and as the Bard himself implored – ‘Piece out our imperfections with your thoughts.’ And so we give you, ladies and gentlemen, our Whisky