The Freshwater Five – Traverse Theatre

From the Isle of Wight, theatre company Deadman, have embarked on a national tour of The Freshwater Five, a true story very close to home. Directed by the company’s artistic director, Samuel Bossman, and written by Liam Patrick Harrison, this play aims to spread light on miscarriage of justice and community.

Inspired by the real events, the play focuses on 2011 where five fishermen from Freshwater, in the Isle of Wight, were accused and jailed for conspiring to import £53m worth of cocaine onto the island. In 2021, new evidence was found that hoped to free the men who were collectively jailed for a total of 104 years. The Freshwater Five is a deep analysis into this evidence and recounts what led up to the events.

This play has an intriguing premise – a genuine local story told by creatives from the island itself – but unfortunately, it didn’t quite hit the mark. Despite being on a national tour, and the Traverse not being its first stop, the piece felt clunky and under rehearsed with obvious mistakes throughout. For such an interesting story, it’s a shame its creases weren’t ironed out before presentation. One may suspect a glaring problem may be the size and scale of the Trav One stage and the raked seating causing the audience to look down on the action. Maybe this piece would excel more in a studio setting. Moreover, at times the plot felt confusing. With unclear time flips and sudden multi-rolling, it was often difficult to grasp where we were and who we were watching. Add that to random movement sequences and excruciating scene transitions, The Freshwater Five didn’t feel fresh at all and would benefit from some dramaturgical support.

As far as the cast goes, the main standout role is from Samuel Bossman himself in the roles of Daniel Payne and John Beere. Bossman exhibits a strong grasp of emotional balance, often hitting the right notes in his performance without going over the top. Unfortunately, it was hard to follow why such emotion was coming to the forefront at times.

Lighting design, by Jack Hathway, was creatively used – especially with the lights hanging from above that mimicked the kind of lights you may find on a ship. Set design, by Paula Chitty, was simple but effective but felt drowned out in such a big stage and the use of ropes on the floor caged the actors, reducing the space and leaving too much of it empty. Ulysses Wells’ and Charlie Prices’ sound design was regularly too loud and drowned out the dialogue from the actors. It also felt quite disconnected from the wider piece, as though it was its own entity and not running in conjunction.

The Freshwater Five has the premise to be a great show but, unfortunately, sinks underneath the audience.

Reviewer: Dylan Mooney

Reviewed: 15th May 2026

North West End UK Rating: