Actor Maxine Peake stages pioneering Parliamentarian Betty Boothroyd's story as a comedy musical.
By Ian YoungsThe first female Speaker of the House of Commons is having her life story told on stage - but rather than being a dry political drama, it sees actor Maxine Peake sing in her first musical and return to her comedy roots.She discovered she wasn't cut out to be a chorus-line showgirl at the London Palladium, so her stint as a member of the Tiller Girls dance troupe after World War Two was short-lived.
"And then when you start with somebody who used to be a Tiller Girl, you think, well, this could be fun, especially for a musical."Betty Boothroyd first stood for Parliament in 1957, eventually getting elected in 1973 He adds: "We make no promises that things are biographically factually correct, although we think there is some truth in all of the moments. But it is not a bio-musical. It is a musical about people making myths about a woman they love."
The characters in the Dewsbury am-dram group have their bread buttered on various sides, but they agree Lady Boothroyd is, as Peake believes too, a symbol of democratic respectability and stability compared with today's politicians.
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