Exhuming Emily – Etcetera Theatre

Monty Bulmer sits at the bottom of Mealt Falls in the Isle of Skye with a compound leg fracture and the tide coming in. Above him, entombed in the frozen waterfall, is the body of Emily. Monty intends to exhume the body. He beseeches God for a miracle.  

In order to convey to God just how important it is for him to exhume Emily, Monty tells the story of what led him to his current situation. With a heavy focus on his tumultuous relationship with his father, Monty recounts his life story. I don’t want to describe the plot further, so as not to spoil any of the shocking twists and turns. I would suggest that those particularly sensitive to upsetting themes around sexual offences use their discretion when deciding whether or not to see this show.

Alex Maslin’s richly complex script explores themes of masculinity, faith, and grief. The plot is dark, harrowing, and gripping. While it initially has the appearance of an everyday domestic drama, elements of organised crime add life and death stakes to the plot. And, of course, the corpse of Emily literally hangs over everything as an intriguing hook to keep the audience engaged even during the more mundane parts of the story.

Despite delivering the entire monologue from the ground, James Grimm’s performance as Monty is utterly engaging. He is skilfully able to captivate the audience through his dynamic gestures and upper body movements, his deeply emotional facial expressions, and his energetic vocal performance. He has an easy-going charm that perfectly suits the sardonic humour of certain moments of the script, without undermining the more poignant moments. The understated lighting and sound design ensure that the audience’s focus is entirely on Grimm’s performance 100 percent of the time. Grimm and directors Alex Maslin and Alex Fernandes successfully ensure that this play that could have felt stagnant and boring in lesser hands feels engrossing.

There were a handful of moments that felt less believable than the rest of the show. For example, every so often – usually as a transition between different story beats – Monty suddenly shivers and shields himself against the elements, while in between these moments he seems totally unfazed by the cold. Similarly, some of the more overtly emotional outbursts seem to come and go very suddenly. However, these moments barely detract from the gripping story and excellent performance.

Showcasing a fantastic performance from James Grimm and boasting a deep, thrilling, and disturbing script from Alex Maslin, Exhuming Emily is well worth seeing. Be prepared to experience a shocking play that goes to very dark places, without feeling exploitative or gratuitous.

Reviewer: Charles Edward Pipe

Reviewed: 6th February 2026

North West End UK Rating: