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George Critchley for PMA Productions Ltd in association with Leisure in Hyndburn presents...
'Cinderella' written and directed by George Critchley arrives at Oswaldtwistle Civic Theatre, The Prince of Wales Theatre, Cannock and The Muni, Colne this Christmas 2010/2011, starring...
CORONATION STREET's NICK COCHRANE (Andy McDonald), EASTENDERS' MARK HOMER and GEMS TV's SCOTT WORSFOLD and FIONA EGAN and a full professional cast.
"The best pantomime I have seen in my entire life" - Kevin Berry - The Stage, about PMA's production of Cinderella at the Georgian Theatre Royal, Richmond.
Cast:
Nick Cochrane (Coronation Street)
Mark Homer (EastEnders)
Scott Worsfold (Gems TV)
Fiona Egan (Gems TV)
Ella Vize
Mira Ormala
Sophie Mae-Meeson
Musical Director: Andrew Morrison
Percussion: Ben Winter
Choreography: Karen Heritage
Musical Supervision: Malcolm Bennett
Costume Design: Irene Whitehall
Written and Directed by George Critchley
Oswaldtwistle Civic Theatre - 8th to 18th December, 2010
Featuring The Zoe Taylor School of Dance.
Prince of Wales Theatre, Cannock - 24th to 31st December, 2010
Featuring Studio 5 Dance Studio
The Muni, Colne - 7th - 23rd January, 2011
Supported by ASDA and Burnley FC
Featuring East Lancashire School of Dance
And..George Critchley as Buttons in his 15th consecutive year!!!
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George Critchley for PMA Productions Ltd presents...
"Jack and The Beanstalk" at:
The Festival Drayton Centre, Market Drayton - 3rd to 7th December, 2010
A fun musical traditional pantomime for all the family at The Festival Drayton Centre....
Friday 3rd December - Schools 10am & 1pm
Saturday 4th December - Public 11am & 3pm
Sunday 5th December - TBC
Monday 6th December - Schools 10am & 1pm
Tuesday 7th December - Schools 10am & 1pm
BOX OFFICE: 01630 654444
www.festivaldraytoncentre.com
Darwen Library Theatre - 10th to 24th December, 2010
BOX OFFICE: 01254 706006
www.darwenlibrarytheatre.com
Jennings Theatre, The Wave, Maryport - 27th - 31st December, 2010
BOX OFFICE: 01900 811450
www.thewavemaryport.co.uk
George Critchley for PMA Productions brings his version of this traditional tale to life in Market Drayton with a cow, magic beans and a beanstalk instead of coat’s, shoes, but the sword is still required! Meet our hero, Jack, who needs the sword as he climbs the Beanstalk to battle the Giant and his evil sidekick Fleshcreep, and rescues the Princess......hopefully!
Cast:
Claire Coultrey
Victoria Jones
Lily Lowe-Myers
Will Hazell
Griff Jameson
Jonathan Metcalf
Darren Street
Musical direction by Malcolm Bennett
Choreography by Stacey Pike
Written and Directed by George Critchley
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Vikings and Norsemen told many tales while they lived in Britain and people listened to them - stories that were full of giants and magic and magical things, such as Jack the Giant killer’s coat, shoes and sword. Like many stories re-told, like Chinese whispers, details would change, with new details created and others forgotten, and so, Jack the Giant Killer became the basis for Jack and The Beanstalk.
“This is a happy pantomime. The audience participation is constant and welcomed. Everyone is having a great time”
The Stage
“Jack and the Beanstalk is a lavishly-costumed and wonderfully colourful show... For a family afternoon (or evening) out it's great value for money.”
The Citizen Newspaper
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George Critchley for PMA Productions Ltd presents...
"Alice in Wonderland" - The Tour
Darwen Library Theatre: 30th October, 2010
The ACE Centre, Nelson: 17th and 18th December, 2010
AYR Town Hall: 23rd and 24th December, 2010
Thwaites Theatre, Blackburn: 12th February, 2011
Bolton Albert Halls: 17th February, 2011
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George Critchley for PMA Productiions Ltd recently presented...
"Farley's Date by ExEASTENDER Mark Homer at:
The Old Red Lion, Islington, LONDON
20th July to 7th August, 2010
BOX OFFICE: 020 7837 7816
www.oldredliontheatre.co.uk
Three OFFIE nominations from Offwestend.com for ...
Best New Play, Best Actor (Mark Homer) and Best Set Design
Farley's Date - written by Mark Homer
CAST:
Matt Warman
Helen Barford
Mark Homer
Jayne Denny
Directed by Rob Crouch
Farley's stuck in a rut: pigeon-stepping it to his mid-thirties but clutching to a fading dream. For best mate Jace, life couldn't be rosier. Good job, nice pad and soon to marry the lovely Stella! In Farley's pokey flat in Lewisham, the boys finally green light their trip of a lifetime Easy Rider style.
Will the boys ever get their motor running? Just the small matter of telling the bride to be!
Farley's Date, written and performed by Mark Homer (Eastenders), is a heartwarming and humorous look at morality in love and friendship and what happens when dreamers have to grow up
What's On Stage review - August 4th, 2010 ***
Farley’s lounge is a microcosm of his world: claustrophobic and in a bit of a mess. Dumped by his girlfriend, and wallowing in this pokey pit of self pity, Farley (Matt Warman) wants to hit the road; Route 66, Easyrider style, and he’s trying to persuade his best mate Jace (Mark Homer) to go on one last splurge with him. Jace, however, is playing out his life by the rulebook. He’s got a good job, and is weeks away from marrying his girlfriend. If this premise seems hackneyed, that’s because it is, but bear with me…
This familiarity is actually the play’s strength; we are in Farley’s lounge after all. It’s nicely paced, the characters well drawn, and the acting, on the whole, convincing. We all know people like these; the boys talk around, rather than about serious matters, they mess around, and end up on just the right side of totally hopeless and vaguely endearing. Helen Barford as Stella holds her own in this boys’ world; she’s quite a feisty madam who is all the same dreaming of her big day and wearing her Nan’s pearls. But they are not mere types, there’s something fresh about the delivery that makes this portrayal feel like a snapshot rather than a cartoon of disillusioned thirty-somethings.
Special praise goes to Sarah Charles-Thomas for the set; with clever placement of a wash basket and plastic cabinet just offstage, giving the impression of a Farley’s festering bathroom just beyond our view.
I was also pleasantly surprised by former Eastender Mark Homer's script, with it’s chirpy chatter and easy humour.
What's On Stage reader reviews:
This new play is 'laugh out loud' funny with highly charged, emotional and moving moments with a great cast. My friends and I were kept enthralled throughout. Highly recommended. - Clare Dent
30 Jul 10

A very funny and yet deeply moving and thought provoking script along with 4 wonderful talented actors makes this play a truly great night at the theatre. If you are use to the big West End theatres along with the even bigger West End theatre prices try The Old Red Lion which is extremely intermate and very reasonably priced and the high quality of Farely's Date you rarely find in the West End. - Adam B
26 Jul 10
REMOTEGOAT Review at The Old Red Lion:
"Amusing writing promises greater things"
SOLT/TheatreFix Review: Farley’s Date at the Old Red Lion
Mark Homer’s new play may not be about to change the face of theatre, but it is a genuinely good night out.

When preparing to see a play about two men confronting the onset of middle age and chasing their dream of a round-the-world motorbike trip, I’ll be honest: my expectations weren’t the highest. How much room do we have left for stories of men mourning the passing of their youth? In spite of my cynical mindset, Farley’s Date is a piece of original and satisfying theatre that is more than worth making time for.
Farley is undeniably stuck in a rut. As a last dance, he and his soon-to-be-married friend Jace plan to pursue the journey of a lifetime. Unsurprisingly, this doesn’t go down well with Jace’s fiancée, Stella, and prompts several skeletons to come out of the closet. What emerges is a subtle but deeply felt exploration of the danger of chasing dreams. I’m reluctant to sport clichés, but rarely has the praise ‘the time just flew by’ been used as a more honest assessment: the two hours could quite easily have been twenty minutes.
This is partly a result of the familiarity of the situation, but more so a result of the honesty, vulnerability and commitment invested in the acting. The male parts would seem to be more developed than the female – in part because of the nature of the piece – but the ensemble is flawless. The actors’ ability to cover glitches is fantastic. So much so in fact, that mistakes begin to seem like positive occurrences, as they reveal just how closely-knit the cast are, and their almost infallible team work.

The set design by Sarah Charles-Thomas is particularly note-worthy. Her set manages to make the Old Red Lion seem much more expansive than usual whilst the inclusion of dead plants, takeaways and scrawled notes effectively convey the claustrophobia of a one-bedroom flat. Gently symbolic, the unpretentious realism of this set makes it seem so familiar that we almost overlook it.
If you’re looking for show that’s politically provocative or that’s going to shake up your understanding of theatre, then Farley’s Date isn’t for you. If, however, you want to see an incredibly intimate, completely watchable and utterly enjoyable show, then it’s more than worth a look.
Helena Rampley
Thursday 22nd July, 2010
Quote from an email received by me today from a theatregoer who attended the performance on Tuesday 19th July...
"If you're still trying to get people to go for Farley's Date tonight, I STRONGLY recommend that people go.
It was one of the best nights of theatre I've ever had - the characters were believable, well-rounded and beautifully acted. There were satisfying twists that no-one in the audience saw coming and it had a proper structure to it. To be honest, I've seen less professional performances on large west end stages. It's also very, very funny.
The beer's good there too! "
The British Theatre Guide Review....
Farley's Date
By Mark Homer - Little Homma Productions
Brockley Jack Theatre
Review by Sandra Giorgetti (2009)
In Farley's Date Farley wakes up on the sofa feeling like the scum "on the worst pond in the world". Partly this is due to the fact that girlfriend Holly has left him and partly this is due to the many consoling beers consumed the night before with best mate Jace.
The evening had been spent, can in hand, re-planning their youthful dream of 'doing' the American southwest Easy Rider-style, but when about-to-be-married Jace tries to back down in the cold light of sober day, Farley won't have any of it and manipulates the situation and Jace to get his own way.
Mark Homer's writing is adroit. Although Farley and Jace are polar opposites their relationship is well-expressed and convincing, and although Homer might have written the part of Jace with himself in mind there is no hint of cherry-picking.
The plot is familiar but the well-imagined, consistently funny dialogue provides a refreshing and entertaining approach to it. There are a number of surprises and twists as the story progresses, and although these also are not universally original there is undoubtedly a skill at preparing for a turn without signalling its impending arrival.
Homer has an excellent feel for a funny line and at finding humour in the most tragic of events, and then using humour, or the absence of it, to provide focus where it's needed.
Mark Homer proves himself to be a very capable actor as well as writer (I can't imagine him being involved with EastEnders!) and Matt Warman, who is naturally funny, is outstanding as Farley, a bit of a looser but amiable. Helen Barford gives a persuasive performance as bride-to-be Stella, practical but winning, and Jayne Denny ably handles Tina, who finds herself amongst the ménage and whose grounded approach provides contrast to the root-less.
Rob Crouch directs the fluent cast of four and you can sense a 'comic chemistry' between them. What a shame the run of Farley's Date was a fleeting four performances.
MAKE YOUR DREAMS A REALITY
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Email georgepma1@mac.com
The magnificent Seven!
This Christmas season PMA Productions have been invited by seven venues to produce professional pantomimes and Christmas shows at the following venues:
Cinderella
For the first time ever a pantomime and it's a PMA Production at The Wave Centre. Maryport - a new revolutionary £3.3 million Entertainment, Heritage and Conference Centre on Cumbria's west coast.
27th - 31st December, 2009
Box Office: 01900 811450
SLEEPING BEAUTY
Sleeping Beauty this Christmas 2009/2010 season stars at Oswaldtwistle Civic Theatre, The Prince of Wales Theatre, Cannock and The Muni Theatre, Colne.
Oswaldtwistle Civic Theatre:
9th - 19th December, 2009
Box Office: 01254 232172
The Prince of Wales Theatre, Cannock:
24th - 31st December, 2009
Box Office: 01543 578762
The Muni Theatre, Colne:
8th - 24th January, 2010
Box Office: 01282 661234
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
PMA Productions return to Darwen Library Theatre for their eighth Christmas...and presents...
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
11th - 24th December, 2009
Box Office: 01254 706006
www.darwenlibrarytheatre.com
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz also this Christmas at:
The Festival drayton centre, Market Drayton.
"North Shropshire's quality entertainment venue with state of the art sound and lighting with a professional 200 seater theatre"
5th - 8th December, 2009
Box Office: 01630 654444
www.festivaldraytoncentre.com
Goldilocks and The Three Bears
starring Tony Howes at The Georgian Theatre Royal, Richmond, North Yorkshire
9th - 31st December, 2009
Aladdin
A short film from this year's production.