Three of the UK’s most revered comedians are brought together in a new play visiting the region next month. Featuring an imaginary conversation between Tommy Cooper, Eric Morecambe and Bob Monkhouse, The Last Laugh has been written and directed by one-time TV presenter Paul Hendy, who explains to What’s On why the show has been such a labour of love...

“I’ve been obsessed with comedy, and in particular what I call the golden age of British comedy - the 1970s and 80s - ever since I first saw Morecambe & Wise on television. Tommy Cooper, Les Dawson, Frankie Howerd… that’s my era.”

Paul Hendy, writer, director & producer of new play The Last Laugh is nothing if not effusive about comedians and comedy of a certain vintage.

“I’ve written a play that imagines Eric Morecambe, Tommy Cooper and Bob Monkhouse sitting in a dressing room discussing life, death, comedy, and what it means to be funny; why some people are funny, and why some people aren’t funny.”

The TV presenter turned writer/producer arguably has an inside track on the debate, and even has something in common with Monkhouse, having hosted game shows such as Don’t Try This At Home (with Davina McCall), Stash The Cash and Wheel Of Fortune. Paul was the kiss of death for the latter - it was cancelled after his single year in the hot seat, having been on air for 23 years prior to that - but the bulk of his work has been rather more successful. CBBC show Dear Mr Barker, which he hosted, was nominated for a BAFTA, a 2023 play he directed about child star Lena Zavaroni earned major critical acclaim, and the production company he runs with his wife has won Pantomime of the Year at the UK Pantomime Awards on four occasions.

The Last Laugh has already earned rave notices in Edinburgh and London, and a short film version, which Paul wrote, directed and produced, scooped several awards. These included Best Comedy Drama at the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival and Best Film at the Manchester Film Festival.

“The success was great, but I always thought there was more in it, because that was just a 20-minute film,” he recalls of the 2016 movie. “There was so much more to be explored about these three legends of comedy and what they’d talk about.”

The film was written with specific actors in mind, to the extent that Bob Golding (Morecambe), Damian Williams (Cooper) and Simon Cartwright (Monkhouse) dictated which three comics would feature, not the other way around.

“They are all brilliant,” says Paul of the actors, who all reprise their roles in the stage version, “and I’m not just saying that. They’re not just doing impressions; it’s about more than that. It’s about the spirit of those comedians, and that’s what seems to touch people.”

Having developed the film into a play during lockdown (“we all had a bit of time on our hands”), Paul took it to the Edinburgh Fringe last year, where it proved a big hit. A West End run followed, and it’s also recently been performed, somewhat surprisingly given its quintessentially British content, in New York.

“It’s fascinating to see [the reaction of] the Americans, who don’t know [the stars] at all. Eric and Tommy appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show in the 1960s, but none of the audience would remember. So it plays not quite as a straight play, but they really have to listen to get who each of the characters are, whereas in Britain there’s already a love and nostalgic warmth for them.

“What we found in the West End was that people who like that style of comedy really love it because it brings back memories of watching with their mum and dad or grandparents and so on.

“It’s funny, but it’s also poignant and very nostalgic. I think if anybody remembers and loves these comedians, they’ll get a lot from it, because it’s my love letter to the golden age of television comedy.”

But as much as he thinks it will appeal to people who remember that time (“over-50s is the sweet spot”), Paul believes the show goes beyond being a nostalgia trip and has something for younger audiences too.

“Anybody who likes comedy and has an interest in the history of comedy - or, to be honest, just wants a good laugh - will enjoy this, because ultimately it explores what it means to be funny, even if you don’t know these actual comedians. Last year at Edinburgh, we had a lot of comedians come to see it, and they responded so positively because it was all so relevant to them.”

Comedy and comedians have always been fertile ground for drama and pathos - from the ‘tears of a clown’ cliché to a need to be validated, accepted, lauded, or even loved, that borders on obsessive.

“Bob Monkhouse was originally in a double act in the 1950s and early 60s, and his comedy partner [Denis Goodwin] committed suicide. He also had a son who was severely disabled, so he had quite a life of tragedy. He was also rejected by both his parents.

“In the play, the characters discuss what drives somebody to be funny, and Bob Monkhouse really analyses that. Is it maternal or paternal rejection? Or both, in his case? What makes them continually search for the next laugh?”

Monkhouse’s sparring partners in the play also had their crosses to bear. Eric Morecambe was an only child constantly looking for a brother figure - a role eventually filled by Ernie Wise, who he bonded with for nearly 50 years - while Tommy Cooper was a natural clown ultimately burdened by people never taking him seriously.

“In the play, Tommy tells a true story of when he was upset and sitting down on a pavement, crying. A group of people saw him and started laughing at him. So Tommy Cooper crying was actually funny… it was like a curse to him.

“He couldn’t help being funny, which I imagine was great 90 per cent of the time but not the other 10, when you want to be taken seriously.”

Although The Last Laugh is a split between humour and drama, it errs very much on the side of the former - as well as being a celebration of the three much-loved icons featured in the show: “It’s in no way an exposé of these comedians’ lives - it’s a love letter. It’s joyous. When we played in the West End, there was so much love and warmth; you could feel it in the theatre, which was great. We live in difficult times, with everything that’s going on in the world, and I think we need that at the moment.”

The Last Laugh shows at The Alexandra, Birmingham, from Tuesday 22 to Saturday 26 July

By Steve Adams