Theatre Play – Chichester Observer – Wednesday, 06 December 1933

“Lieut. Col. W. G. Moore and members of the Selsey branch of the British Legion undertook a big thing when they decided to present R. C. Sherriff’s great play. It is a play which stands in a category by itself. Unless the author’s intention is made sufficiently clear, the play loses its point with the younger generation. The subtleties of the thing are so great, the characters are so diverse, and the moral so important that only a good cast can do it justice. All concerned in the production, and performance of the play, as I saw it at the Pavilion, Selsey on Tuesday last, are to be heartily congratulated. Whilst it is to be admitted that they had the personal interest of Mr Sherriff himself, the fact remains they gave a remarkable presentation. Most people know the central theme of the play. It centres round a company of officers, who are brought together by the fortunes of war, into a common fraternity. They are occupying a position in front of the German lines at St. Quentin, during one of the most important phases of the Great War. The scene takes place in a dug-out. This was a most faithful reproduction, replete with upturned boxes in place of chairs, a roughly constructed table, empty bottles in which candles are stuck, and the usual paraphernalia littered all over the table, amongst which maps of the sector can be seen. The lighting effect was as good as could be expected. There was just that sufficiency of dimness that gave the effect of it being underground, but not too much so that the faces of the actors could be seen. The occasional burst of high explosive outside added to the added reality. I’m glad it was not overdone. When the play first opens, Capt. Hardy (J. E. Francis) is giving over to Capt. Stanhope (Nelson Hoar). With Capt. Stanhope, are Lieut. Osborne, 2nd Lieut. Trotter and 2nd Lieut. Hibbert. Stanhope is feeling the terrific strain. He is afraid of being afraid. His nerves are jagged, and he tries to find some relief in the whisky bottle. To Capt. Stanhope’s company is posted 2nd Lieut. Raleigh, who has just come out. The long arm of coincidence has been busy, and when the young sub is introduced to his superior officer, he finds in him a hero of his school-days, and incidentally the man to whom his sister is engaged. The pleasure of the youngster in this meeting is not shared by Stanhope, who is afraid that the boy will find his idol has feet of clay. He puts on the heavy air and threatens to censure the boy’s letter. The youngster is left wondering what is wrong, and in that frame of mind, he goes into action. He and Lieut. Osborne are to take part in a raid. Lieut. Osborne was a school master, and in the dug-out, whilst these two are waiting for zero hour, the youngster, full of excitement at the thought of his first big chance, and the older man, who has lost all illusions, we have a conversation taking place. Raleigh is mad to talk about anything except the war. Rugby football, the delights of the New Forest, and the relative values of coffee and cocoa. It was a wonderfully well acted scene. They go out, but Lieut. Osborne does not return. Raleigh recoils from this first big impact with grim reality and instead of returning to the dug-out for supper, he remains in the trenches with the men. This brings on him the bitter tongue of Stanhope. Poor Raleigh cannot understand. And so we are taken on to the great climax. The play is not all tragedy. The author has created a great character in Mason, the servant. He introduces the humorous element with his Cockney witticisms. This part was well taken by C. E. Smith. He did not overdo the part. His humour was never pointless. He sensed the tenseness of the situation and he played his part in order to bring relief, if only for a moment. Nelson Hoare, as Capt. Stanhope, had the big part, and he was big in it. It was a remarkable performance. His bearing and his voice gave it distinction. His scenes with the windy Hibbert and young Raleigh will stand out in my mind as some of the finest acting I have seen. The character could not been in better hands. E. A. Swindells, as Lieut. Osborne was a delightful personality. He was a father to the young subs., or at least an uncle, and he understood a little what Stanhope was suffering. He was kind in his judgement; he was ready with his great heart to help the others. He knew better than they what war was, and he remained cheerful, and was ever found reading “Alice in Wonderland” prior to going out on a raid. Mr. Swindells gave us a very clever performance. It was all so real. C. E. M. Forrest, as Lieut. Trotter had quite a different character to impersonate, but he, too, did well. The same can be said of R. W. Smith, who was Lieut. Hibbert. His acting when he tried to get out of his job by going sick was as good as anything we saw. E. Barford, as 2nd Lieut. Raleigh, scored a big success. He was the enthusiastic, sport loving boy, and we wondered how he would react to the frightfulness of war. We felt with him when Stanhope bullied him, we shared with him his sorrow at the death of Lieut. Osborne, and we felt a lump in our throats when we heard he had been killed. He was charming and lovable, and a true type of the flower of our young manhood. F. W. Owens was the efficient Company Sergeant-Major. G. F. Hardy as the Colonel, W. M. Long as L/Cpl. Broughton, and A. Withers, as the German prisoner, all had small parts, but they sustained them admirably. F. Charrett and J. Robinson acted as escort, and the effects were in the capable hands of R. H. Smith, F. W. Phipps and F. Clough. The play had a wonderful reception, and fully deserved it. I hope we shall see a further presentation of “Journeys End” by this talented company.” The proceeds of the performances were for Legion Funds.