The Last Laugh – Cast Interviews
Devonshire Park Theatre
Tuesday 26 – Saturday 30 May 2026
The smash-hit West End play The Last Laugh comes to the Devonshire Park Theatre, 26 – 30 May, reimagining the lives of three of Britain’s greatest comedy heroes – Eric Morecambe, Tommy Cooper and Bob Monkhouse this show is a new laugh-a-minute play from writer and director Paul Hendy.
Performed nightly at 7.45pm with three 2.30pm matinees on Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday.
Warm, irresistibly funny, nostalgic and poignant, The Last Laugh is packed with comedy gold, blissfully timeless and relatable, and will have you laughing and crying in equal measure.
Ahead of its run at The Devonshire Park we caught up with the cast – Steve Royle, Damian Williams and Simon Cartwright – to chat about the nostalgia, the tour, and most importantly, the laughs!
The names of these three comedians (Eric Morecambe, Tommy Cooper and Bob Monkhouse) will conjure up a sense of nostalgia for many – do you have your own fond memories of them?
Steve Royle (Eric Morecambe): I can’t hear the name Eric Morecambe and not think of childhood Christmas’ sitting around the telly with the family. Classic sketches like The Andre Previn conductor routine, Angela Rippon with the BBC Newsreaders dancing and Glenda Jackson as Cleopatra still feel fresh in my memory. I remember spending hours in the kitchen trying to re-enact the Stripper routine with my brother, toast, grapefruits and teabags flying everywhere. I still do a little dance whenever the fridge door is opened and I can’t flip a pancake without humming that tune.
Damian Williams (Tommy Cooper): I have so many fond memories of these iconic men from watching them at Christmas with the family, particularly sitting with my dad watching Tommy Cooper and seeing him crying with laughter. I grew up with them and was certainly influenced by them. Tommy is the reason I got into the business.
Simon Cartwright (Bob Monkhouse): All three were iconic legends of British light entertainment and featured in positive childhood memories for me. I enjoyed watching Bob Monkhouse presenting in the very early 70s – I would have been 6-years old – programmes like ‘The Golden Shot’ and then into the 80s with ‘Bob’s Full House’. They are fond memories of a time that I can recall, happier family environments when we’d all watch stuff together.
Without giving too much away, what is The Last Laugh about—and why do you think it resonates with audiences today?
Steve: I sum The Last Laugh up as a comics guide to comedy. It delves deep into the heart and soul of what makes a comedian and the pressures that come with the job. It is also a play about friendship, love and understanding. I think this is the key to its success, it helps us all understand how differences combined with mutual respect can unite us in an, all too often, fractured world.
Damian: Watching The Last Laugh is the closest you’ll get to spending 80-minutes in the company of these great men. It’s about the art of comedy, the relationship between these three men and what it’s really like to be funny for a living. It’s full of laughs, nostalgia, warmth and love.
Simon: I think it reflects on a time when families would sit down and watch television together, nowadays that’s very rare because of streaming, people being dissipated around family lives and watching things on their smartphones. I think people do remember times when they sat down together, the halcyon days – looking back into the 60s and 70s, people seem to think they were happier times.
How do you find the balance between playing a caricature and making it your own? Has your relationship with these characters changed over time?
Steve: As I am foremost a comic before I am an impersonator I hope to bring a sense of empathy to the role. I have personal experience of a lot of the sentiments expressed in the play; loneliness, guilt at missing family events, fear of people not laughing, for example. When I first saw the play I couldn’t see why it was entertaining to anyone other than comedians, it really touched a nerve with me. I now see that it is a fascinating insight into the complexities of being a comedian. It also shows the hidden sides of all three comics, what they were like off stage as opposed to the familiar roles they occupied on it. There is a juxtaposition between the confidence required to perform in front of thousands and the real fears lying beneath.
Damian: As an actor I wanted to play Tommy as the man he was and try to avoid just doing an impression. It’s been interesting to really study him and to learn more about who he was. The three of us have worked incredibly hard to capture them without doing a caricature.
Simon: First and foremost, I knew Bob Monkhouse personally, so from a method-acting point of view, I can really draw on and recall what he was like off-stage, so I have that distinct advantage. These are three very vulnerable men who share the love of making people laugh, and they get there in different ways. It’s all about finding authenticity and truth rather than trying to create a caricature or an impression, we’re not doing that, we’re going for truth and sentiment. I think the more we perform this, the more truth we’re finding in the words and it’s resonating with our own personalities as well.
What do you hope audiences take away from the play—not just in terms of laughter, but perhaps something deeper too?
Steve: Merchandise; I’m selling Jams, Chutneys and personalised Mugs to supplement my wage. I’m joking of course! Seriously, I hope people take away a smile and that warm feeling that nostalgia can bring. These are three of this country’s greatest ever comedians and if their memories and the joy they brought to millions can be rekindled then our work has been done.
Damian: What we’ve learnt so far is that the audiences are totally transported back to a time when they sat as a family and watched these great comedians on the TV. We can totally feel the love from the audience as soon as the play starts. You’ll be laughing one minute and crying the next. You’ll learn more about these men and what it was really like to be them. I can’t wait for you all to see it.
Simon: I hope that audiences take away a new and fresh insight into the three comedians. I hope that a younger generation, who might not have seen the comedians before, discover them and walk away with an interest, and we ultimately keep their memories alive. I hope for the older generations we’re a warm reminder of a bygone age, the golden age of British comedy!
The Last Laugh plays at the Devonshire Park Theatre, 26-30 May. Call Box Office on 01323 412000 or head to the website www.eastbournetheatres.co.uk, choose your seats, and your tickets for a great night of entertainment will be ready “Just Like That!”.
Questions: Sammi O’Neill
Photograph: Manuel Harlen