It's billed as a "chilling psychological thriller", and perhaps it was when The Creeper first played 40 years ago, but frankly, this play has not stood the test of time. Why not is a bit of a mystery. The Creeper is the story of how Edward Kimberley (Ian Richardson), the misogynist owner of a large country pile, is displaced by his cuckoo of a companion Maurice (Oliver Dimsdale). It is set in the 1960s when country houses were still declining after the war, and so was contemporary to its first productions. This is the first failing of this production - because it now feels like a period piece, and the audience does not get the sense of it being the end of an era. Lacking in chills and thrills  | | Ian Richardson as Edward Kimberley |
The creeper in the garden grows ever closer to the house, engulfing a dead tree which threatens to crush the building. Maurice is the creeper, which slowly stifles the way of life of Kimberley. This is such an obvious metaphor, yet the creeping inside the house does not quite come off. Frankly, the plot has not stood the test of time, and some of the writing, and perhaps directing, lets the cast down too. The first act is neither chilling or thrilling. It is written with a lightness of touch that, thanks to the inclusion of such bizarre items as a dead dog's pickled eye, it feels more like a comedy. Act Two is supposed to be a darker affair altogether but by now the audience is expecting humour, so one of the pivotal moments which should have shocked was accompanied by laughter from the audience. From here on in, it is pretty downhill. Marvellous performances But, and it's a big "but", although the play may not be brilliant, the performances are.  | | Oliver Dimsdale, Maurice, & Ian Richardson, Edward |
Ian Richardson is frankly marvellous, entertaining and versatile - not least when he had to ad-lib when a key sound cue was missed. Oliver Dimsdale and Alan Cox, as his camp predecessor Michel, are equally good, and the dialogue is sparky. All in all, The Creeper is something of a strange beast - it is well worth a visit, if only to see Ian Richardson, but this is not a "chilling psychological thriller" anymore. The plot does not come off, and there are some very long periods of silence, but at least the set is pretty to look at. | 
