Kings Langley Players

Mike Leigh’s darkly witty comedy of manners set in 1970s suburbia ‘somewhere in Essex’.

A polite drinks party for new neighbours given by the brash, opinionated and ever so upwardly mobile hostess Beverley rapidly spirals out of control and ends in tragedy.

A satire on the pretentions of the emerging middle classes, it is sprinkled with nostalgic references to red wine in the fridge and Demis Roussos but as the alcohol takes hold and pretentions slip, awkward silences and hilarious bickering make way for uncomfortable truths.

Despite being firmly anchored in the era of cheesy pineapple on sticks and the Ford Capri it never loses its ability to hit a raw nerve and remains a touchingly enduring story of real people in awkward social situations.

We’ve all been there!