Time and Time Again
From Tuesday 28th July to Saturday 1st August, 2026
at Devonshire Park Theatre, Eastbourne
Confusion and obsession abound when three men lust after the same lady as Alan Ayckbourn takes a hilarious look at English eccentricity in Time and Time Again.
It is amazing that this comedy-drama, one of Ayckbourn’s earlier works, premiered way back on July 8, 1971, at the Library Theatre in Scarborough and had its West End premiere on August 16, 1972, at the Comedy Theatre.
It has survived the test of time, and was very well received by the audience at the performance I attended at Devonshire Park Theatre on Tuesday afternoon.
The play gets off to a slow start at the wake of Leonard and Anna’s mother, but the pace soon picks up.
Leonard, estranged from his wife and children. is boarding with his sister and brother-in-law at their mum’s house.
Pete Ashmore perfectly captures the social awkwardness of retired schoolteacher Leonard, who prefers to chat to the garden gnome than his sister and brother-in-law.
Anna (Katy Dean) is a house-proud wife who is dominated by her overbearing husband Graham (Phil Stewart).
They act as hosts to Graham’s sports-mad employee Peter (Simon Pothecary) and his attractive fiancee Joan, who becomes the object of the other men’s attentions. Peter warns that he will lose his temper if given reason to be jealous, but worse is in store for him.
Joan, delightfully played by Tanya-Loretta Dee, transfers her affections to Leonard.
When Peter eventually realises he has lost her, he mistakenly believes it is the lecherous Graham who has stolen Joan from him.
The five cast members are all impressive, but could sometimes respond more indignantly to the putdowns their characters receive. This may reflect on the direction of Ben Roddy, who, for the most part, does an excellent job.
The set design by Andy Newell is superb. He crams in so much furniture and accessories to both the conservatory and the garden to give a perfect 1970s feel. With the help of costume designer Geoff Gilder.
It all adds up to a quality production by phil&ben Productions and a most entertaining experience.
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Tony Flood spent most of his working life as a journalist, initially on local and regional papers and then on nationals. He was also editor of Football Monthly, Controller of Information at Sky Television and enjoyed a spell with The People before retiring in 2010.
He recalls: “My work as a showbiz and leisure writer, critic and editor saw me take on a variety of challenges - learning to dance with Strictly Come Dancing star Erin Boag, becoming a stand-up comedian and playing football with the late George Best and Bobby Moore in charity matches.
“Now I spend much of my time writing books, and theatre reviews and articles for online magazines Unknown Kent and Sussex and The Write Site. I recently retired from playing veterans football, having been one of the oldest - and slowest - players in the country!” Tony's first book was fantasy adventure SECRET POTION, which went to No. 1 in its Amazon category and has been recommended by other authors for Harry Potter fans of all ages.
His celebrity book, MY LIFE WITH THE STARS – SIZZLING SECRETS SPILLED! is full of anecdotes and revelations about showbiz and sports personalities, including Eric Morecambe, Elvis Presley, Kylie Minogue, George Best, Frank Sinatra, Joan Collins, Strictly Come Dancing stars, Muhammad Ali and Bobby Moore, with whom Tony worked.
The versatile Mr Flood then turned to writing in another genre with spicy crime thriller TRIPLE TEASE, endorsed by best-selling author Peter James, actor Brian Capron and The Sun newspaper's Stuart Pink. Following the success of TRIPLE TEASE, Tony wrote STITCH UP! – KILLER OR VICTIM? and FALL GUY.
In BEGGARS BELIEF compassionate copper DCI Harvey Livermore and his Major Crime Team are again trying to put a killer behind bars in a gripping, fast-moving story.
Tony has also co-written, with his wife Heather Flood, LAUGHS AND TEARS GALORE – STORIES AND POEMS WITH TWISTS!
Tony gives talks about the showbiz and sports stars featured in his celebrity book, as well as holding miniworkshops and giving advice on how would-be authors can write a successful book. Any groups wishing to contact him can email:
tflood04@yahoo.co.uk Tony is chairman of Anderida Writers of Eastbourne. The link for the Anderida website is:
www.anderidawriters.co.uk
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