Search results for ""Author Amanda Whittington""

A gripping drama about Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be hanged in Britain. A divorcee with a young child to care for, Ruth works in the kind of nightclubs where there’s more than just a drink on offer. The girls work hard, play hard and dream of a movie-star life. Then she meets the wealthy, womanising David, a racing driver with whom she becomes obsessed. Fame comes - but not in the way she imagines. Why does their relationship end in murder? Why does she plead not guilty but offer no defence? Why does she show no remorse? And who is she trying to protect? Amanda Whittington's play The Thrill of Love dramatises the true story of Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be hanged in Britain, and takes a fresh look at the woman behind the headlines. The Thrill of Love was first staged at the New Vic Theatre, Newcastle-under-Lyme, in 2013.

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An exuberant comedy about four likely lasses from the Hull fish docks on a day trip to the races, from the author of Be My Baby. Work, love and life are just one long, hard slog for the fish-filleting foursome Pearl, Jan, Shelley and Linda. But their fortunes are set to change when Linda finds tickets to Ladies' Day at Royal Ascot the year it relocated to York. Out go the hairnets, overalls and wellies as the four ditch work, do themselves up to the nines and head off to the races for a drink, a flirt and a flutter. If their luck holds, they could hit the jackpot - and more besides... Amanda Whittington's play Ladies’ Day premiered at Hull Truck Theatre in 2005 and has been revived many times since, including at the Royal Court in Liverpool and the Oldham Coliseum. Ladies' Day is the first in Amanda Whittington's Ladies Trilogy, and is followed by Ladies Down Under (Hull Truck, 2007) and Ladies Unleashed (Hull Truck, 2022), all featuring the same four principal characters, Pearl, Jan, Shelley and Linda.

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A poignant drama about attitudes to teenage pregnancy in 1960s Britain. Mary Adams, aged 19, is unmarried and seven months pregnant. Forcibly sent to a Mother-and-Baby Home in the north of England by a mother intent on keeping up appearances, Mary – along with the other girls in the home – has to cope with both the shame and the dawning realisation that she will have to give the baby up for adoption whether she likes it or not. Despite this – and an overbearing matron – the girls' youthful effervescence keeps breaking through as they sing along to the girl-group songs of the period. Amanda Whittington's hugely touching play Be My Baby was first performed by Soho Theatre Company at the Pleasance Theatre, London, in 1998. This edition of Be My Baby includes new scenes added for several successful revivals of the play.

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Ex-boxer Taylor Flint wants to put the past behind her. Yet back on the Hull estate where she grew up, she is drawn into running a boxercise class. For Lauren, Jazz, Aneta and Grace, boxercise soon becomes more than a way to lose weight and have a laugh. Life is tough and throwing the punches helps them to face their challenges. The class meet in The Six Bells, which landlady Nora runs as her own community hub. When the pub is threatened with closure, the women refuse to throw in the towel. They commit to an unlicensed Fight Night to raise cash and rally the locals. Yet as the countdown begins, it's Taylor who finds herself on the ropes. Inspired by Hull's original Mighty Atom, Barbara Buttrick, Amanda Whittington's play Mighty Atoms premiered at Hull Truck Theatre in 2017, as part of Hull UK City of Culture.

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The funny, heart-warming sequel to the enormously successful Ladies' Day, following the lasses from Hull on their adventures down under. After hitting the jackpot at Ladies' Day in York, the fishfilleting foursome - Pearl, Jan, Shelley and Linda - are celebrating in style with the trip of a lifetime to the land of Oz. While Shelley dreams of luxury and glamour, the rest of the gang decide to go native and camp out under the stars at Uluru. But Shelley soon discovers there's more on offer than posh hotels, stunning beaches and sun-kissed surfers; and Pearl finds that she's got a mountain of her own to climb... Ladies Down Under is the second play in Amanda Whittington's Ladies Trilogy, alongside Ladies' Day (Hull Truck, 2005) and Ladies Unleashed (Hull Truck, 2022), all of them featuring the same four principal characters, Pearl, Jan, Shelley and Linda.

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Dazzling and sequin-studded, Kiss Me Quickstep is a play about the world of ballroom dance, taking us behind the fixed smiles and fake tan to look at the real lives of those for whom ballroom dancing is everything. Justin and Jodie have finally made it to the national ballroom-dancing championships in Blackpool – via the motorway hard shoulder. Luka's come all the way from Russia. Nancy's been training for this since she was three. Lee and Samantha arrive on a wave of success. But what if your dance-floor dreams are turning into a nightmare? How do you stop dancing to other people's tunes? What can you do if your partner's secret could cost you the crown? And, even when the whole world's at your feet, it only takes one false step... Amanda Whittington's Kiss Me Quickstep premiered at New Vic Theatre, Newcastle-under-Lyme, in 2016, in a co-production between the New Vic and Oldham Coliseum Theatre.

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1917: World War One is raging in Europe. In Britain, Sterling Ladies – known as the Dagenham Invincibles – are playing to win. For two whirlwind seasons, they never lose a game. Yet once peace is restored, the factory girls must hang up their boots and see triumph fade into obscurity. 2023: Injured footballer Maya follows England's progress through the Women's World Cup. The world has changed, yet the roar of the Lionesses echoes the Invincibles' war-cry. Watching at home, Maya fears she'll never play again – but as she loses herself in the present, she hears the call of the past and finds fresh hope for the future. Amanda Whittington's play The Invincibles celebrates two generations of inspirational women, and their adventures on the football pitch a century apart. It was premiered at Queen's Theatre Hornchurch in 2023, and offers rich opportunities for other theatre companies looking to score a hit with their audiences.

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Pearl, Jan and Linda are enjoying a long-awaited break on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne, when a surprise visitor turns up. They haven't seen Shelley for years, and their retreat becomes a reunion – and pretty soon, a riot. But a lot has changed since they were last together and, cut off from the mainland, tensions rise with the tide. As the sky darkens, the island grows restless with echoes of the past. Will the four still be friends when dawn breaks? Following the smash hits Ladies' Day and Ladies Down Under, Amanda Whittington's Ladies Unleashed is the third play in her Ladies Trilogy. A moving comedy about friendship, growing older and living for today, it was first performed at Hull Truck Theatre in September 2022, directed by Mark Babych. The Ladies are back, and amateur theatre companies – as well as their audiences – are sure to delight in their riotous exploits.

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