Along with the National Theatre of Brent, Lip Service is one of our great two-person ensembles. For more than 20 years, Maggie Fox and Sue Ryding have transgressed genres from road movies to the Brontës with their flat-packed props and eyebrow-raising humour. It is a mystery why it has taken them this long to tackle a form as ripe for parody as the spy thriller. Fox grew up watching James Bond films and Diana Rigg in The Avengers, and this show marks the realisation of her fantasy to defeat the forces of evil in a slinky leather catsuit.
It ought to be pointed out that Diana Rigg stopped wearing catsuits some time ago, but, as the taller half of the duo, Fox still has the legs for it, if not the mobility to execute kung-fu kicks. So, expanding the budget to unprecedented levels, Lip Service have employed a stunt double: the astonishingly agile Martin Tucker, whose willingness to perform multiple back-flips in a blonde wig can only be applauded.
The action is set in 2012, when M, having had her budget slashed because of the Olympics, is reduced to hiring middle-aged mothers of three. From the outset, Jane Bond struggles to juggle the demands of spying and participating in the school run. A scheduling mishap leads to the obliteration of a small eastern European country. Well, not all secret agents have to get their daughters to violin practice, and one has to prioritise.
As with any Bond adventure, the plot is merely a pretext to employ the gadgets, including a powder compact that doubles as a satellite dish and a poisonous lipstick - which goes to prove that you cannot underestimate the value to international espionage of a commodious handbag.
· Until tomorrow. Box office: 01904 623568. Then touring.
