John Godber’s iconic comedy Bouncers tours to Theatre Royal Bath

John Godber’s hit comedy Bouncers - one of the most popular plays of the last fifty years - visits the Theatre Royal Bath for the first time appearing from Monday 22 to Saturday 27 April.

Eye-wateringly funny, celebratory and as relevant today as it ever was, Bouncers has become an international sensation garnering awards around the world.

Lucky Eric, Judd, Les and Ralph are the original men in black as they tell the tale of one night in a Yorkshire disco in the 1980s in this outrageous parody of Saturday Night Fever. All the gang are out on the town, the boys, the girls, the cheesy DJ, the late-night kebab man and the taxi home, all under the watchful eyes of the Bouncers.

Image credit: Ian Hodgson

Outrageous, hilarious and highly physical with a pumping 80s soundtrack of modern classics, this new production revisits the glorious highs when disco was king, and everyone lived for the weekend.

After a sell-out 2023 tour, the John Godber Company brings this iconic play to Bath starring Frazer Hammill as Lucky Eric, Nick Figgis as Judd, Tom Whittaker as Ralph and George Reid as Les, directed by Jane Thornton. 

John Godber said: “We are delighted to be taking Bouncers back to the heyday of disco and the 1980s. Looking back there was so much wrong with the decade but also so much to celebrate, this new production dances a balance between what was great and what is cringe-worthy now.” 

Image credit: Ian Hodgson

The very first version of Bouncers, which was a two-hander, received its premiere in 1977 at the Edinburgh Festival performed by Peter Geeves and John Godber himself. Revised and expanded by Godber in the 1980s to feature four actors playing a host of characters, the play remains one of the most performed in the UK today and is still widely studied across GCSE, A Level and University syllabuses. Bouncers has been described as a “social phenomenon” by The Guardian and was selected as one of the National Theatre’s “Plays of the Century." 

Image credit: Ian Hodgson

Playwright John Godber has won a multitude of awards including an Olivier Award, two BAFTAs, five Edinburgh Fringe Firsts, seven Los Angeles Drama Critics’ Awards, and the Yorkshire Arts Personality of the Year Award. With hundreds of credits for screen and stage, his work has been seen across theatre, film and television, including the series Brookside and Grange Hill. One of the most performed writers in the English language, his many plays also include Teechers, Shakers, Up ‘n’ Under, Our House, On the Piste, Perfect Pitch, Gym and Tonic, The Office Party and April in Paris. John Godber received an OBE for his services to the Arts in 2018.

Bouncers appears at the Theatre Royal Bath from Monday 22 to Saturday 27 April. To book tickets contact the Theatre Royal Bath Box Office on +44 (0)1225 448844 or visit theatreroyal.org.uk.