Almost 30 years after the original film came to our screens, Tiptop productions return to Theatr Clwyd with the brilliant The Full Monty.
Directed by Peter Swingler, we follow the story of a group of Steelworkers in the 90s who find themselves out of work as yet another steel factory has been closed and they are trying to find their way through unemployment, depression, body image and much more. As the play unfolds, we realise it’s not just about six men taking their clothes off but heart, emotion and real people.
When Gaz faces the possibility of losing shared custody of his son, he has to find a way to make money. And fast. After seeing the crowds that the Chippendales have drawn in, he gathers a group with five other guys to create the Buns of Steel, a group of strippers who will do a one off event to help him raise the money and save his relationship with his son, Nathan. But this group will eventually go one step further than the Chippendales and go The Full Monty.
During their time putting the group together, we witness the ups and downs of the group, with Lomper’s depression, Dave’s body image issues, Gerald’s lies to keep his wife happy and just how far Gaz will go for his son.
Desmond Hinks leads the group as Gaz and gives an assured performance, creating a nice bond with Ollie Jones as Nathan. This is more apparent towards the end just before they do their performance in the scene outside the pub between the pair.
Ben Wheelhouse is fantastic as Dave, with lots of ‘confidence’ and ‘humour’ which we discover is all an act to cover the fact that his body image is bringing him down as he becomes the punchline of many jokes. His relationship with wife Jean, played by Carly Dallen is lovely to see, as you get to witness their arc from feeling distant to coming back together when the truth comes out and they realise they love each other for exactly who they are.
Peter Crump is great as Gerald, playing the former foreman who thinks he’s above all the guys but realises he’s exactly the same as them and becomes a little more human as the play goes on. James Wilkinson is brilliant as Horse with lots of humour and fantastic moves. Gareth Hughes gives a confident performance as Guy, with lots of laughs and delivering a hilarious, shocking end of act one. And Paul Mannion as Lomper is brilliant. The character who I feel goes through one of the biggest character changes and Mannion takes us on that journey beautifully.
The set was quite simple and at times the stage looked a little bare, with the stage being quite large but it was used well for the most. I felt the lighting was a little dark at times but this could have been intentional to reflect the mood of the time I just felt occasionally we were unable to see the people who were talking.
There were times the dialogue was a little difficult to hear as some cast were quite far back on the stage and were maybe not projecting enough to carry to the back of the auditorium but this didn’t take away from the enjoyment and the cheers from the audience.
The soundtrack used throughout the show was fantastic, using songs to link scenes and bring out the emotion of what had just happened and used perfectly.
The were many highlights this evening but the famous dole queue dancing got a huge reaction and the final routine was choreographed and delivered perfectly rounding off a fantastic story and giving the audience what they came for, The Full Monty.
A huge congratulations to all of the cast who worked well together to create a fantastic show and a well deserved standing ovation.
The Full Monty runs at Theatr Clwyd until Saturday 13th with limited tickets available from www.theatrclwyd.com
Reviewer: Damian Riverol
Reviewed: 10th June 2026
North West End UK Rating: