Miss Shepherd used to drive ambulances in the war. She might also have been a nun. Now, she sells pencils and pamphlets, frequently hears voices and enjoys regular visits from the Virgin Mary. Oh, and she lives in a clapped-out, hand-painted Bedford van. Which one day she decides to park in Alan Bennett’s front garden in Camden Town. Read more …
Caught in two minds about his uninvited guest, Mr. Bennett debates with himself – quite literally – about the moral implications of playing landlord to such a tenant, whilst Miss Shepherd subjects him to bizarre observations, questionable hygiene practices, unusual (to say the least) political opinions and her very own brand of Catholicism: she was hoping to phone Mother Teresa for a chat, but Directory Enquiries drew a blank.
Friends, neighbours, relatives, doctors and social workers all come and go, yet Miss Shepherd’s van is still wedged tightly onto Mr. Bennett’s property fifteen years later. And Miss Shepherd clearly has no plans to leave, unless it’s in a van-shaped box.
Alan Bennett’s award-winning play from 1999 is a fascinating, true life story of a complex relationship, an experiment in tolerance and a unique tale of British eccentricity.
Patrick Sandford's production goes beyond its initial comic warmth to recall a time when people like Miss Shepherd were at the very least indulged, and in districts like Camden accepted as part and parcel of a once colourful but now gentrified social fabric.
A sheer delight.
A memorable sideways portrait of the changing Britain of the 1980s.
Intriguingly, in an overlong play that emerges as an entreaty to look beyond labels such as homelessness and mental illness to the person beneath, it is the character of Bennett himself that remains impenetrable.
Pitlochry Festival Theatre, Pitlochry from Thursday June 11, 2015, until Wednesday October 14, 2015. Playing in repertory. Check website for performance dates.. More info: www.pitlochry.org.uk
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