Mock Tudor

Hampton Court Palace is in disrepair. The armour is rusty, the floorboards creak and the maze is unkempt. Worse, the “costumed interpreters” who play out the life of Henry VIII just don’t seem to cut it anymore in a tech-obsessed world. Their slimy boss, Kent (Fraser Millward), wants to exchange the traditional visitor experience for a Google Glass interactive extravaganza.

Lily Bevan’s Mock Tudor finds languid comedy in the unlikely world of Tudor re-enactors and, though it could go further, points out some interesting tensions in the difference between the “past-past” and “future-past”. Oscillating between backstage and performance, we take the role of day visitors watching well-rehearsed playlets turn into deranged debacles.

Though the story sometimes lacks depth and nuance, comedy and character are central here; from Bevan’s confused portrayal of the Spanish Catherine of Aragon to Will Rastall’s Sam, who plays the King with the blind arrogance of Toast of London, the gags charge at us with all the force of a joust. There’s also some intelligent and affecting acting from Sophie Bleasdale’s Jess, who re-enacts Tudor life for fun and takes the whole thing just a little too seriously.

Mock Tudor’s overarching message may seem a little reactionary in its fervent nostalgia, but Bevan’s firm grasp on sympathetic characters makes for an enjoyable sixty minutes. These guys may not know their pheasants from their forsooths, but their impromptu rendition of ‘Billie Jean’ is the best you’ll find in any museum in the land.