A couple of weeks ago, the hit musical Operation Mincemeat made its way to Bradford’s Alhambra Theatre, and so Christine and I went to see it. It’s very good.
The true story of Operation Mincemeat
Like Kinky Boots, which we saw last month, Operation Mincemeat is based on a true story. The actual Operation Mincemeat took place in 1943 and was a distraction strategy by allied forces during the Second World War. It involved planting the body of a street tramp, disguised as a high ranking military official, off the coast of Spain. The body contained important (but crucially faked) documents implying that the Allies planned to invade Sardinia. Instead, the actual plan was to invade Sicily, which, at the time, was heavily guarded by Nazi forces. Sure enough, forces were re-allocated from Sicily to Sardinia, allowing the Allies to liberate Sicily.
Two books have been written about Operation Mincemeat; a novel in 1950 called Operation Heartbreak, and a second book in 1953, The Man Who Never Was. This second book was written by Ewen Montagu, one of the intelligence officers involved, and it was adapted for a film in 1956. A later film followed in 2021, called Operation Mincemeat, and now there’s a musical adaption too.
The musical
The musical largely follows the actual events of Operation Mincemeat, with some artistic license. It’s performed with just five actors, who, through many rapid costume changes, play lots of different parts. The set is relatively simple, with lighting used to great effect throughout. The songs are all original, and number over 20 – much of the show takes place in song.
It’s a lot of fun to watch. The cast were all great singers and performers, and despite the many, many costume changes, it always felt slick and well-rehearsed. A nice touch comes towards the end, where there is a tribute to the street tramp, and a revealing of his actual identity.
Whilst not aimed at children, Operation Mincemeat is fine for families with children to watch. I don’t think our ten-year-old would have liked it, but teenagers may be interested.
The musical opened in London in 2019, and moved to the West End in 2023 where it’s still running. It’s therefore unusual for a musical to go on tour so soon afterwards, but it appears that the West End run is almost completely booked up for months. Indeed, there appears to be a ballot to get tickets now. As such, you have more chance of seeing it on tour. Whilst the Bradford Alhambra Theatre run is over now, as I write this it is coming to the end of a two week run in Sheffield, after which it is off to Stoke-on-Trent and then Chester. It makes it back to Halifax in October, and I’m highly tempted to see it again.
