Martin Jarvis and Clare Bloomer Reprise Their Roles in MAGGIE & TED at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre

Martin Jarvis OBE, one of the UK's most distinguished and beloved actors, reprises his role as Sir Edward Heath in MAGGIE & TED at Guildford's Yvonne Arnaud Theatre in October. The week-long run follows a critically acclaimed sell-out West End première earlier this year.

Martin Jarvis is widely celebrated both for his stagecraft and also for his numerous radio and audio performances, including his legendary readings of the Just William books. "Maggie" will be played by Clare Bloomer, who has been described by Gyles Brandreth as "quite the best Margaret Thatcher I've seen". They will be joined by Jon Glover, star of Spitting Image and Week Ending (and known as television's Mr. Cholmondley-Warner) and Lisa Bowerman, a former regular on BBC TV's Casualty and who is widely known as Professor Bernice Summerfield in the celebrated Doctor Who spin-off audio series.

Staged as a radio play, the comedy-drama follows "Ted" Heath and his hilarious and relentless feud with his successor, Margaret Thatcher. For over 20 years Margaret Thatcher and Edward Heath enthralled and appalled the British public with their profound political disagreements, reinforced by their intense personal dislike for one another. Now Maggie and Ted are back! "Mr. Europe" and the "Boadicea of Brexit" rollick their way onto the Surrey stage! Expect plenty of hand-bagging as these two titans of British politics reignite their long-running bitter feud.

"Maggie" and "Ted" defined British politics for much of the 1970s and 1980s. Maggie ousted Ted as Leader of the Conservative Party, becoming the first woman to lead a major political party in Britain, and went on to become our first woman Prime Minister, winning three elections in a row. Ted never forgave her for her impudence, for her good fortune - or for her formidable electoral success. In due course, Maggie built the bonfire of Brexit, lit it, then spent the rest of her life fanning the flames. Ted's life's work was in ruins, and he never forgave her. How could he?

Written by playwright and author Michael McManus who worked for both protagonists, knew them well and researched and edited Sir Edward Heath's biography, The Course of My Life (1998), as well as writing another biography on him, A Singular Life (2016). He explains: "I knew both Ted Heath and Baroness Thatcher - and I seek to represent them in this play, not as pastiche or as parody, but as they really were. They both had their flaws, of course, but they could also both be very funny, deeply impressive and also very kind and considerate. It is a great honour - both daunting and exhilarating - to have written the first new, political play to make its West End début since the beginning of the pandemic and I am looking forward to bringing it to Guildford's Yvonne Arnaud Theatre."

Maggie and Ted were improbable Tories - working-class warriors who became an extraordinary double act. Mrs Thatcher served loyally in Ted Heath's government from 1970 -1974 before challenging and defeating him in the Conservative Party leadership election in 1975, to become Leader of the Opposition. She went on to win the General Elections of 1979, 1983 and 1987. Heath returned to the back-benches, where his bitter 25-year feud with her became known as "the incredible sulk"; he became one of the most dogged critics of Thatcherism - and of the woman who inspired it.

The hilarious, rancorous, running battle between these colossal personalities opened up the schism over Europe that divided party and nation - and ultimately led to Brexit. The play shines an intense and sometimes uproariously funny light on Maggie and Ted and the Birth of Brexit. Helped by a supporting cast of characters including: Sir Winston Churchill; Harold Wilson; Tony Benn; Denis Healey; Sir John Major; Sir Denis Thatcher; Roy Jenkins; our P.M. Boris Johnson, and of course Her Majesty The Queen!

Dates: Tuesday 12th October - Saturday 16th October 2021
Booking link: https://www.yvonne-arnaud.co.uk/whats-on/maggie-and-ted
Box Office: 01483 44 00 00

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