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Flying Pigs soar with Rothienorman Picture Show – just don’t expect basques and butteries

Ready to soar at His Majesty's are The Flying Pigs, from left, Moray Barber, Elaine Clarke. John Hardie, Craig Pike, Susan Gordon and Greg Gordon.
Ready to soar at His Majesty's are The Flying Pigs, from left, Moray Barber, Elaine Clarke. John Hardie, Craig Pike, Susan Gordon and Greg Gordon.

The Flying Pigs are set to soar at His Majesty’s with The Rothienorman Picture Show this week – but don’t expect basques and butteries.

Because, despite the name, the much-loved Doric comedy team’s new show has nothing to do with Rocky Horror.

“We spend some time coming up with the best pun we can for a title and it never bears any relation at all to the content of the show,” said Flying Pig stalwart John Hardie. “We always have to start the production warning people if they think that’s what they’re coming for they are going to have a long evening.”

John recalled a previous Flying Pigs show – How To Look Good Glaikit – created a stooshie in the stalls of HMT.

Meet The Flying Pigs,  fom left, Greg Gordon, Susan Gordon, Craig Pike, John Hardie, Elaine Clark and Moray Barber.

“It was when Gok Wan was at the peak of his fame and we had a walkout on the second night, because it was a party of people who genuinely thought they were coming to see Gok Wan at the theatre,” he said.

“They were genuinely surprised and disappointed what they were getting was not a live version of the TV show.”

Sparkling laughs with old favourites from The Flying Pigs

“So there are no basques and butteries, it’s really just a pun to make you smile when you read the poster – and remember there’s a show on.”

What audiences heading for The Rothienorman Picture Show will get, is an evening of sparkling laughs and music from The Flying Pigs, who are made up of John, Moray Barber, Greg Gordon, Susan Gordon, Elaine Clark and Craig Pike.

John said all of the familiar characters from the Pigs will be there to delight fans – old and new.

Craig Pike and John Hardie, getting ready to take to the stage with The Rothienorman Picture Show at His Majesty’s Theatre in Aberdeen.

That will include Seaton Park keepers Archie and Davie –with Davie on a health kick, Mither and Faither coping as the world of social media and the internet arrives at their house and lifestyle guru Tanya Souter is offering advice to middle-class couples spending too much at the supermarket.

But what won’t be there is much mention of the pandemic – even though Covid kept The Rothienorman Picture Show off the stage for two years. It was due to debut in June 2020.

John said: “We actually had our first rehearsal on the Sunday night just as (the coronavirus) was becoming the biggest story on earth. Given what was happening around the world, we sat in a circle two metres apart and decided we wouldn’t be doing a show in June.”

In the intervening two plus years, the show has been more or less completely changed, said John.

People want escapism when they come to see The Flying Pigs at HMT

“We had some discussions about whether we should do a Covid show,” he said. “The source of our material is always finding the fun in the everyday experiences of the north-east and everyone’s everyday experiences for the past two years has been around the pandemic.

The cast as they were for their previous outing at His Majesty’s in 2018 with Now That’s What I Call Methlick.

“So we wrote a lot of material that was pandemic-adjacent at least, but some of the things we had been writing about topically at the time in mid-2020 turned out to be not usable anymore either.

“For example, there was a song about Donald Trump that was, rather crucially, dependent on him being both the President of America and on Twitter. It went in the bin.

“But as the show approached, about three or four months ago, we came to the view that actually what people want in the theatre at the moment is a bit of escapism, just being able to park their troubles at the door. So we’ve completely excised all references to the pandemic.”

John said this completely differing show is slightly nostalgic, in that its characters inhabit a world in which the pandemic hasn’t affected them and they’re not mentioning it.

“So we’re going back to a time a little before the world changed,” he said.

Flashback to 2013 when The Flying Pigs were getting ready to stage Finzean In The Rain.

There are, though, some strands emerging from the sketches and songs that will be entertaining audiences at HMT from Wednesday to Saturday this week.

Having kids and fine food… all themes for The Flying Pigs

“As we’ve been rehearsing it, I’ve noticed there’s an emerging theme of having kids… and food. Our preoccupations appear to be the intricacies of parenting and fine food. But my wife saw a run this week and she says the theme is ageing.”

Which isn’t really surprising given The Flying Pigs will next year be celebrating the 25th anniversary of their first show, Last Tango In Powis, after the group grew out of the Aberdeen Student Show.

Elaine Clark and Moray Barber in rehearsal for The Rothienorman Picture Show.

It is quite an achievement to still be so enduringly popular 25 years on – tickets for this year’s show have been flying out the box office – especially when you consider all of the team are juggling day jobs and families.

John reckons their longevity is down to the lasting friendship of the team – who have been together since the start, although Steve Rance bowed out after their last show, Not That’s What I Call Methlick, in 2018.

“He finally recognised the arrangement which had him driving from Glasgow every night in a battered and aged Vauxhall Astra, wasn’t compatible with being married with two kids,” said John.

“We haven’t replaced him, we’ve just tried to spread ourselves out a bit and fill in the gap.”

Ready for their close-ups, Flying Pigs members Greg Gordon and Susan Gordon.

How to get tickets to see The Flying Pigs at His Majesty’s Theatre

And he’s also grateful for the audiences who keep coming back.

“While people want to come we are going to keep being there. So if you’re already coming to the show this week, thanks very much, I hope you enjoy yourself.

“And if you aren’t already coming, my message is it’s not too late to get a ticket. There’s still good availability for Thursday night in the Upper Circle.”

For more information and tickets for The Rothienorman Picture Show, go to aberdeenperformingarts.com


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