Home at Seven Mystifies and Excels at The Tabard
Spiffing costumes and a zesty plot intrigue Susan Stanley-Carroll
Bridget Lambert and Sam Ellis in Home at Seven. Picture: Yuchu Zhao
September 5, 2025
“Home at Seven”, a two-act period mystery drama written in 1950, should hit the spot as direction and acting are excellent. It closes on 20 September. The plot hinges on a 24-hour period of amnesia that will keep you guessing and eager to find out the truth.
Written by R.C. Sherriff - also the author of “Journey’s End” - directed and produced by Claire Evans; this immaculate production ticks all the boxes. From the seven actors perfectly cast in their individual roles to David Fitzhugh’s set that is a charming replica of a fifties sitting room - the original telephone belonging to R.C. Sherriff adds authenticity of the production.
The costumes by Jan Huckle are simply ‘spiffing’ including silver-gilt armbands, polished vintage leather lace up shoes, an ironed handkerchief, black and brown bowler hats, a pinny, and artificial flowers decorate the millinery.
A powerful opening scene rivets the attention of the audience and encourages our ‘suspension of disbelief’. The clues in this scene ‘although they niggled in my mind’ were soon overpowered by not only the action but the twists and turns of the zesty plot. Every ringing bell be it the front door or the telephone increased my interest and involvement as the plot rapidly darkened.
The cast are all experienced professional actors. Each one gives a top-notch performance as their diction, timing, involvement is 100% focused. It is interesting to observe the actors responding to such extraordinary, but seemingly plausible information as it is revealed.
David Preston (Sam Ellis, played in the 1952 film by Ralph Richardson) is a bank employee who comes across as Mr. Nice Guy, and yet as he tries to recall his amnesia his credibility diminishes. Sam’s strong, believable performance throughout the play is superbly sustained and his final moment is deeply moving.
Dr Sparling (Andrew Williams, played by Jack Hawkins in the 1952 film) is outstanding. Andrew creates a highly intelligent, engaging witty character who lurks under the carapace of an unobtrusive country doctor. Andrew adds depth and much humour to the intricate plot.
Greg Fitch (Inspector Hemingway) Karl Moffatt (Major Watson), Jeremy Todd (Mr. Petherbridge) - all three actors play their characters with assurance, humour and keeps the pace of the production pivoting along.
Bridget Lambert (Mrs. Preston, first played by Olivia De Havilland) is the epitome of a dutiful, fifties wife who obeys her husband unless provoked. Bridget exudes the glamour of the era and adoration for her troubled husband.
Maddie Crofts (Peggy Dobson) played her character with gusto and glitz and eventually warms the cockles of Mrs. Preston’s heart. Despite …. Ho! Ho! ? No spoiler revealed here!
‘Home at Seven’, is a polished production, ready to hit the boards, and tour other local theatres. An intriguing drama that will resonate with a range of ages as for some it will be a ‘walking-dancing’ museum piece and for others a nostalgic trip down memory lane.
It echoes memories and moments of the recent pandemic, as well as the horrific disasters, that are pounding out of many countries, within our brave but challenged world. The poignant finale of ‘Home at Seven’ clearly states R.C. Sheriff’s message to us through the last 55 years - but no spoilers!
Susan Stanley-Carroll
Performances at the Tabard Theatre are scheduled Tuesday to Friday at 7:30pm, with a 6:00pm Saturday showing. The cast includes Maddie Crofts, Sam Ellis, Greg Fitch, Bridget Lambert, Karl Moffatt, Jeremy Todd, and Andrew Williams. Tickets range from £19.50 to £23.50 and are available at tabard.org.uk or by calling 020 8995 6035.
Theatre at the Tabard is at 2 Bath Road, Chiswick (W4 1LW).
Like Reading Articles Like This? Help Us Produce More This site remains committed to providing local community news and public interest journalism. Articles such as the one above are integral to what we do. We aim to feature as much as possible on local societies, charities based in the area, fundraising efforts by residents, community-based initiatives and even helping people find missing pets. We’ve always done that and won’t be changing, in fact we’d like to do more. However, the readership that these stories generates is often below that needed to cover the cost of producing them. Our financial resources are limited and the local media environment is intensely competitive so there is a constraint on what we can do. We are therefore asking our readers to consider offering financial support to these efforts. Any money given will help support community and public interest news and the expansion of our coverage in this area. A suggested monthly payment is £8 but we would be grateful for any amount for instance if you think this site offers the equivalent value of a subscription to a daily printed newspaper you may wish to consider £20 per month. If neither of these amounts is suitable for you then contact info@neighbournet.com and we can set up an alternative. All payments are made through a secure web site. One-off donations are also appreciated. Choose The Amount You Wish To Contribute. If you do support us in this way we’d be interested to hear what kind of articles you would like to see more of on the site – send your suggestions to the editor. For businesses we offer the chance to be a corporate sponsor of community content on the site. For £30 plus VAT per month you will be the designated sponsor of at least one article a month with your logo appearing if supplied. If there is a specific community group or initiative you’d like to support we can make sure your sponsorship is featured on related content for a one off payment of £50 plus VAT. All payments are made through a secure web site. |