British comedy ‘Yes, Prime Minister’ in Colombo

Based on the classic British television comedy of the same name and written by the same authors, the stage play ‘Yes, Prime Minister’ takes familiar classic characters and places them in a modern setting, facing contemporary issues. 

Written by Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn, the stage play follows the fictional and now infamous British Prime Minister, Jim Hacker and his team including bureaucratically brilliant Cabinet Secretary – Sir Humphrey Appleby, profoundly pedantic Principal Private Secretary – Bernard Woolley and playfully pragmatic Special Advisor – Claire Sutton; as they juggle a European conference, an oil pipeline plan, an unwelcome discovery, an unorthodox request, pressure from the media and the possible collapse of the whole European economy. All, over a ‘socially well-lubricated’ weekend at the PM’s country house, Chequers. 

Discussing the play and the production with much enthusiasm, the directors – Jaliya Wijewardene and Yasal Ruhunage said, “We have grown up watching ‘Yes, Prime Minister’ and other British TV classics so we couldn’t be more thrilled to be putting on this show and bringing to life characters that are beloved to us. What’s even more exciting is that the play has a contemporary setting and the characters are dealing with modern and relatable issues; even smartphones! It’s the old favourite characters dealing with a whole new calamity!”

The fundamental premise of the whole ‘Yes, Prime Minister’ and ‘Yes, Minister’ series is the elaborate power tussle between elected officials and the British Civil Service, which earned the series critical acclaim for its genuine reflection of what goes on in the corridors of power. To this end the directors added, “As they allude to in one of the episodes, much of the excitement, humour and satire in the whole series comes from the clash of the political will and the administrative won’t. This is something we’ve stayed absolutely true to in our creative interpretation of this fabulously entertaining piece. We invite everyone to come and watch; no prior ‘Yes, Prime Minister’ experience required! At the end of it all, it’s a brilliant comedy anyone can enjoy.” It is important to note though, that due to the content and subject matter dealt with in the play, the producers advise that the show is suitable only for mature audiences. 

The cast comprises of Yasal Ruhunage as Prime Minister’s Principal Private Secretary – Bernard Woolley, Jaliya Wijewardene as Cabinet Secretary – Sir Humphrey Appleby, Abbasali Rozais as Prime Minister – Jim Hacker, Minoli Peiris as PM’s Special Advisor – Clair Sutton, Sahan Wijewardene as Kumranistan’s Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Kavinda Gunasekara as Director General of the BBC – Jeremy Burnham and George Cooke as BBC TV Presenter – Simon Chester.

‘Yes, Prime Minister’ by Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn is presented in Colombo by Amphitheatre Productions by special arrangement with Samuel French Ltd. and will go on the boards of the Lionel Wendt Theatre on 28, 29 and 30 June from 7:30 p.m. onwards. Print and Online Media sponsors for the event are the Sunday Times, Daily FT, Daily Mirror and Life Online. Electronic media sponsors are Yes FM and Legends 96.6. Promotional partners are Drama Sri Lanka, Decibel.lk and SH Advertising.

Tickets are priced at Rs. 3500, Rs. 2500, Rs. 1500 and Rs. 800 (Balcony – Unreserved); Box-plan and tickets are available at the Lionel Wendt Theatre and online at www.lionelwendt.org.