Blood Brothers - Willy Russell

I'll be honest, Blood Brothers was not what I expected and that really threw me off for the whole thing and reduced my enjoyment!

After speaking to various people beforehand about it, I got the impression that it was a more serious affair than it was. I was expecting to go in and see something more like Les Miserables rather than Spamalot!

The show lasts about 3 hours (including an interval) and is in the Phoenix Theatre which is located on Charing Cross Road which is placed slap bang in between Leicester Square and Tottenham Court Road tube station and is very easy to find.

Upon entering the theatre, the main lobby area is extremely small so if you get there early and will be waiting around, I suggest you find a spot next to a wall otherwise you end up like a tinned sardine!

Onto the show now. As you will probably be aware by now, Blood Brothers is the story of 2 sons who were separated at birth but became best friends despite their different upbringings. One son (the one kept by their mother) is brought up in a run down area of Liverpool and struggles to make ends meet. The other son is brought up by a wealthy family in Liverpool and never goes wanting for anything.

The story tells of their journey through their early life and how, despite both kids parents not wanting them to be friends and their different upbringings, all the kids want to do is play and have no real care for their parents issues. As the story goes on and the kids get older, so do the supporting cast and this plays a big part in the development of the relationships between the main characters.

When the kids become 18 years old is when they really change and each one is given their own path. The wealthier one is sent off to university where he thrives and retains that childlike qualities and thoughts as he has no reason to mature. The poorer son is forced to mature very quickly and has to work from a young age to earn some money. He soon becomes redundant and is forced to turn to a life of crime and is soon caught and put in jail where he becomes depressed and dependant on drugs which continues once he leaves prison. He also finds out that his wife had kissed the wealthier son and this sends him over the edge. The show finishes with the poorer son pointing a gun at the wealthier one (his brother) and the police pointing a gun at the poorer son. I wont tell you how it finishes as you can read another review for that!

The music in it is very catchy. There are plenty of songs that will have you singing them for days to come and other songs that really capture the moment in the show.

Despite all of this being positive, I went in expecting an epic show and was given more of a light hearted one which, quite frankly, ruined it for me (that and the fact that the couple in front of me were having an argument!). I couldn't get over it for some reason and that certainly clouded my enjoyment.

In conclusion, definitely worth a watch but done go expecting anything particularly deep and meaningful!