Hull New Theatre-goers are used to having their bags searched upon entering the venue, but on Monday evening, my sister, Chrissy, who accompanied me to the theatre to watch Operation Mincemeat, a new musical, was scanned with a metal detector by a kindly security person.
We wondered if this was part of the production – one that involved espionage, skullduggery, death and deceit, where a metal detector might be of some use.
But, no, dear reader, my sis was scanned for real. It was a prelude to new security measures coming to public buildings mainly because of the Manchester Arena attack in 2017 (or so it was explained to us). Anything that keeps us safe on our beautiful planet is OK with me. Right, back to the show.
The award-winning Operation Mincemeat (from the book, music and lyrics created by David Cumming, Felix Hagan, Natasha Hodgson and Zoë Roberts) is set in the year 1943, in the middle of the Second World War, a war which Britain was losing.
This true story of an unbelievable, twisted secret mission, reveals how Hitler was wrong-footed with the help of a dead Welshman, Bond author Ian Fleming and just five members of MI5’s Twenty Committee.
Fleming was recruited in 1939 as personal assistant to the Director of Naval Intelligence, Admiral John Godfrey (the inspiration for “M” in Fleming’s subsequent Bond books).
The dead man in question – homeless Glyndwr Michael – had died after consuming rat poison. Having no family, MI5 discreetly asked the coroner if they could take his body as part of their mission to fool the Germans.
Michael was to be named Major William Martin and, with false papers, love letters from a fictitious fiancée, restaurant receipts and “top secret military plans” in his pockets, his corpse was to be planted as bait in German waters.
The plan was for the Nazis to find the body, believe the fake plans – detailing the allies’ invasion of Sardinia – and encourage 90,000 of Hitler’s troops to leave Sicily (the allies’ true target) and head for Sardinia.
The five brains behind this nonsense were Ewen Montagu, of Naval Intelligence and co-deviser of Operation Mincemeat with Charles Cholmondeley, a WWII flight lieutenant who never flew due to his bad eyesight (you really couldn’t make this up). Both men presented their scheme to John Bevan, head of deceptive operations. Jean Leslie, a teenage clerk at MI5 was roped in to be the photographic evidence of the dead man’s love; completing the group was senior secretary Hester Leggatt who composed the love letters.
And showing us how this ridiculous scheme blooming well worked were five super-charged characters, who rarely stopped for a breather all night long and who all had multiple roles.
The quintet – Holly Sumpton (Montagu), Seán Carey (Cholmondeley), Jamie-Rose Monk (Bevan), Christian Andrews (Leggatt) and Charlotte Hanna-Williams (Leslie) – showed the kind of British eccentricity, aka nuttiness, we are not surprised by when hearing stories such as this; especially after being brought up watching Dad’s Army on TV.
The plot was carried out on a stage setting that resembled an underground bunker – dirty brick walls which housed black phones of that era; a huge backdrop that resembled the squares of a graph upon which hung papers, a clock and very little else. Although the squares did light up throughout the production and inset doors opened at intervals.
A couple of knee-hole desks, chairs and a large notice board were booled out occasionally by the cast – all was deliberately drab. However, a “glitzy finale” gave us all the colour we could ever wish to see.
In endlessly chaotic scenes, the five – usually dressed in trousers with braces, and white shirts; plus dresses and various uniforms later on – sang (I counted 20 original songs), “danced”, jumped (especially Carey as Cholmondeley) and generally acted like posh establishment fools who didn’t have a clue what they were doing. No comment.
Eventually overcoming their suspicion and mistrust of each other, this motley bunch – to our and their complete surprise – successfully carry out Operation Mincemeat.
The on-stage shenanigans were accompanied by rousing music from musicians playing under the musical directorship of Sam Sommerfeld. I felt the music drowned out the cast’s voices during the first couple of scenes, but by old lugholes soon adjusted.
Comic events abounded – the five’s accents were always amusing – and the laughs escalated during the second half when I felt the production really came to life.
Costumes became more colourful and glittery for all, as did the stage setting – a huge plane (with a swastika propeller) upon which stood the actors decked out in ever-changing garb, and a magnificent golden staircase were memorable show-stoppers.
These mad final scenes, including Sumpton as Montagu soaring high above the stage, were a joy to behold. Lights flashed, music soared and the cast made merry in their colourful finery, resulting in a standing ovation from most in the well-attended theatre.
Operation Mincemeat runs until Saturday, July 11th, 2026 at the Hull New Theatre with tickets available at (01482) 300306 and www.hulltheatres.co.uk
Age guidance 5+
Reviewer: Jackie Foottit
Reviewed: 6th July 2026
North West End UK Rating:
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