Voices of Manchester – The Studio, Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

Thankfully avoiding the stereotype of the modern Mancunian, with their bucket hat, Adidas tracksuit and simian stroll, writer Duncan Battman has succeeded in producing a new piece of writing that celebrates the values of Manchester without ever resorting to cliché, displaying its innate humanity through six stories of the people who have made their lives here.

Rather than being presented with the rather austere format of six separate monologues, Writer/Director Battman chooses to fragment and overlap the stories onstage, the first three being set on a tram heading into the city centre with the trio after the interval moving the action into a city centre pub. So, boarding at Altrincham Interchange heading into ‘town’ are Jennifer (Louise Kershaw), Duncan (John Jones) and Lillian (Victoria Johnson), with the tram travelling through Timperley, Sale and Stretford, they break the ‘fourth wall’ to tell us their individual stories.

Jennifer arrives first, elegantly well dressed and flustered, she is on her way to meet up with Oliver an old flame, to see if any sparks are there to be rekindled; Duncan has recently lost his father and is clearing his house of possessions, a process that is invoking Proustian memories of his parental relationship, whilst a shocked Lillian is processing the news of her husband’s recent cancer diagnosis. Johnson plays the elderly Lillian with the no-nonsense attitude we have come to expect from a thousand northern matriarchs, a good pot of tea and initial disbelief give way to stoicism in the face of what she faces, her sensible demeanour only occasionally cracking to show the pain beneath. Kershaw brings wry humour and a sense of hope to Jennifer, constantly restraining herself from getting overexcited at the prospect of beginning a new relationship in her fifties, the overwrought mental gymnastics she displays thinking through the possibilities ahead are delightfully written and brilliantly executed. Duncan’s story is the most densely composed and is clearly autobiographical and Jones has some excellent material to develop, the scene remembering going to Old Trafford for both cricket and football in his youth was evocative and, in his delivery, the accuracy of the detail adding to the realism.

After the interval, we decamp to the bar of Altrincham Garrick which serves as a convincing Mancunian boozer to showcase the final trio of stories. Mick (Jamie King) sneaking away from family duties for an afternoon in the pub with his mates, only to be rumbled by his long-suffering partner; Siobhan (Rachel Jaquest) a young Irish singer making her way in the entertainment industry and Jimmy (Sandy McGregor) a forty-something man surviving on the streets of the city. Whilst Mick has some memorably funny rants, his piece serves to punctuate the more serious stories of Siobhan and Jimmy, one detailing the recent tragic history in Manchester and the other an empathetic explanation of the refugee crisis. Both were told with authenticity, the naturalistic flow allowing the politics to be all the more effective as they were delivered in a style that was more conversational than polemic. McGregor’s rough Scottish burr and Jacquest’s quiet Irish lilt juxtaposed beautifully in telling a quintessentially Mancunian story of immigration and acceptance.

Battman adapted three of his own short stories, combining them with newly written pieces and it is a testament to his writing that it is difficult to spot the join. Initially, I thought the overall structure may hamper the narrative flow and prevent audiences from investing in individual stories and characterisation, but the skilful weaving of the narrative allows natural hiatus to occur in each monologue, the light and shade presented by each story throughout provided shifting contrasts in mood as the evening progressed. Audience members will each have their own favourite characters, and much fun is had with multi-generational references to landmarks, pubs, clubs and events past and present. Battman is a writer clearly intoxicated with our shared heritage and the details that are layered into each story give all of them a sensibility that is recognisably Mancunian, without any of the banal platitudes that so often comes in writing about our city.

‘Voices of Manchester’ is already sold out for its short run this week, but I would strongly expect it to have further life in the months ahead and I would urge you to catch this evocative love letter to Manchester and its people.

Reviewer: Paul Wilcox

Reviewed: 12th November 2025

North West End UK Rating: