Tell Me Straight by Paul Bradshaw. The King's Head theatre, Upper Street, Islington, London N.1. to 21 August 2021. 4****. William Russell.

Part of the theatre’s Queer Season this funny, and perceptive play tells how the guy, played by Paul Bradshaw, who wrote it, is a gay who collects straight men who don’t mind a bit of the other as it were but, to the fury of his actress friend Dani, are not the answer to his problem – he wants love. We never see Dani, just hear her getting more and more annoyed with him, but we do see the men starting with his boyhood pal Matt, who is not averse in time to some misbehaviour but is married, has a pregnant wife and wants his pal to be the Godfather. It is a no win situation, as it is with all the others who are all played by George Greenland, making his professional debut, managing with little more than a change of shirt to conjure up a splendid gallery of men the guy should have nothing to do with but cannot resist. Bradshaw makes an appealing loser looking to become a winner while repeatedly losing and his double acts with Greenland are funny and sometimes not. The piece lasts an hour, which is about right, and ends on a high when at last he meets someone Dani has been trying to set him up with and maybe this time he will break the habits of a lifetime.
Him: Paul Bradshaw.
Matt, Lee, Ryan & Others; George Greenland.
Dani: Stephanie Levi-John.
Director: Imogen Hudson-Clayton.
Lighting Designer: Chloe Stally-Gibson.
Sound Designer: Roly Botha,