Handbagged review – sparks fly at the Queen’s audiences with the Iron Lady

Kiln theatre, London
Moira Buffini’s clever political comedy returns, educating a new generation on Margaret Thatcher’s legacy through her weekly encounters with the monarch

It is unnerving to see a theatrical version of Queen Elizabeth on stage when the late monarch lies in state. Two versions, in fact, because Moira Buffini’s 2013 play about Margaret Thatcher’s weekly meetings with the Queen features split selves – older and younger. That is maybe why director Indhu Rubasingham takes to the stage to account for the timing of the play and invite a minute’s silence before the satire commences.

Almost a decade on this is still a clever, funny and charming political comedy, perhaps a little overstretched in its conceit, with four exceptional performances that almost upstage the script itself.

At the Kiln theatre, London, until 29 October.