Legendary Soho pub Norman's Coach and Horses is set to stage a unique production of a play that was both written and set in the venue itself.
Jeffrey Bernard Is Unwell, written by Keith Waterhouse and first performed in the West End in 1989, is being staged in an effort to save the pub from being taken over by pub giant Fullers.
The immersive production will run from May 7 to June 1, starting from 7pm with lock-ins from midnight on Saturdays. Tickets are available from midday today, and can be purchased on the pub’s website.
The play tells the story of real-life London journalist Jeffrey Bernard who finds himself locked in the famous pub overnight. The role was originally played by Peter O’Toole, and inside the Coach are posters from the original play.
The production is a collaboration between the pub’s landlord Alastair Choat, director James Hillier and Defibrillator Theatre.
“By staging Jeffery Bernard is Unwell in this way, we are celebrating the life and living history of one of London’s great public houses,” said Choat. “I want to create a unique moment, that like Norman’s Coach and Horses itself, will become part of Soho legend”.
Bernard, who sometimes referred to the Coach & Horses as his “office”, is best known for penning the Low Life column in the Spectator, in which he chronicled his debauched days and nights.
The name of the play is taken from the one-line apology that would be published in the Spectator on the the occasion that Bernard was unable to complete the column.
The Coach and Horses, which was also London’s first vegetarian pub, is currently also running a petition against the takeover, which has gained 7,300 signatures.
Jeffrey Bernard Is Unwell will run at Norman’s Coach & Horses from May 7 to June 1. Tickets are available at CoachSoho.co.uk
