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Òran Mór, Glasgow

Four stars

 

Eyes are very much down for a full house in this new play by Marc Pye and Gayle Telfer Stevens, the latest lunchtime extravaganza as part of the current A Play, a Pie and a Pint season. Angie and Linda are pretty much addicted to the allure of the bingo hall, which offers some kind of lifeline, as well as potentially sorting out their respective financial woes. If Angie doesn’t get to call ‘House’, chances are she’ll lose hers. 

 

Linda and Angie’s daughters Stacey and Amy, meanwhile, have other plans, and perish the thought of following in their mothers’ footsteps. With a cool 40k a winning number away, however, Stacey could bankroll her online influencer lifestyle and get some work done on herself, while Amy could kick-start her dog grooming business in style. All it takes to change their lives is one stolen membership card. 

 

There is a lot more going on than meets Kelly’s Eye in Pye and Telfer Stevens’ sit-com style affair. This is brought home in Maureen Carr’s production on Heather Grace Currie’s part bingo hall, part teen bedroom set by a quartet of comic performers who tap into their characters' needs and wants across the generational divide with a gallus largesse.

 

With Julie Duncanson as Angie, Sandra McNeeley as Linda, Éimi Quinn as Amy and Taya Sian as Stacey all rising to the occasion with occasional song based interludes, the play taps into how loyalties can be compromised between best friends and families when money is on the table. As the constant temptations of the ultimate glamorous lifestyle are laid bare, all involved get what they deserve both good and bad. In this way, the script doesn’t take a moral high ground as the women gamble their lives away, but acknowledges the addictive realities of consumer culture. In a cheap thrills world, the prospect of feeling like a winner is probably as big a jackpot as it gets these days. 


The Herald, May 21st 2026

 

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