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Neighbourhood Watch (Ayckbourn play)

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Neighbourhood Watch
Written byAlan Ayckbourn
CharactersDorothy
Rod
Luther
Martin
Gareth
Amy
Magda
Hilda
Date premiered13 September 2011
Place premieredStephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough
Original languageEnglish
SubjectTaking the law into own hands, authoritarian ideals
GenreBlack Comedy
Official site
Ayckbourn chronology
Life of Riley
(2010)
Surprises
(2012)

Neighbourhood Watch is a 2011 play by Alan Ayckbourn. The play premiered on 13 September 2011 at the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough.[1]

Plot

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The play centers around a brother and sister who innocently set up a Neighbourhood Watch group following petty crime from a nearby estate,[2] only for the group to go out of control and become an authoritarian force controlling the lives of the people they are supposed to protect.[3]

Reception

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Critics were generally favourable with Michael Billington from The Guardian calling it "highly ambitious" and "biliously funny"[2] while The Daily Telegraph and The Stage also gave it positive reviews.[4]

A performance starring Paul Lavers was held at the Gordon Craig Theatre in Stevenage in May 2018.[5]

References

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  1. ^ "Alan Ayckbourn's Official Website". neighbourhoodwatch.alanayckbourn.net. Retrieved 1 March 2017.
  2. ^ a b Billington, Michael (13 September 2011). "Neighbourhood Watch – review". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 March 2017.
  3. ^ "Neighbourhood Watch, Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, review". Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 1 March 2017.
  4. ^ "Critics praise Alan Ayckbourn play Neighbourhood Watch". BBC News. 15 September 2011. Retrieved 1 March 2017.
  5. ^ Neighbourhood Watch comes to Stevenage theatre - The Comet 30 April 2018
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