No business like showbusiness?

I just went to see 'Wet Weather Cover' at the Kings Head Theatre in Islington. It's about two actors, an American method man (played by Michael Brandon, who starred in Dempsey and Makepeace many, many moons ago), and an English luvvie (Steve Furst, aka Lenny Beige, aka the bloke out of the Orange adverts). They find themselves sharing a shabby trailer on the rain-soaked Spanish set of an appalling low-budget movie about the conquest of Mexico. Frustration and claustrophobia rapidly set in, leading to verbal and physical conflict.

Good performances, and some funny lines, though some of the conflict between the two was a little forced. I'd rather see tart-tongued squabbling than actual punch-ups. In its portrayal of the unglamorous side of showbiz 'Wet Weather Cover' was quite effective, no doubt due to it being written by an actor, Oliver Cotton. Mr Cotton's CV includes such meisterworks as Christopher Columbus - The Discovery, which featured Tom Selleck as King Ferdinand of Spain, so he clearly has some experience of appearing in dire multi-national hokum.

I'm reminded also of an anecdote Rory McGrath (I think) told once about the long-forgotten comedy Chelmsford 123. One episode featured a scene with some poor extra lying naked in a muddy field through endless retakes and pissing rain. After the scene was finally finished, McGrath asked this guy, who was in his 50s, what drew him in to showbusiness.

'The glamour,' came the unironic reply.