Speed
I choose to believe that the name of Mohamed-Zain Dada’s new drama about a speed awareness course in Birmingham is a nod to the seminal Keanu Reeves ‘90s thriller of the same name.
Okay, it would have to be an ironic nod. But not as ironic as you might think. Speed starts off in wilfully mundane Britcom territory, but ends up somewhere rather more Reeves-friendly.
Harleen, Samir and Faiza are a mismatched trio of British Asians who’ve each acquired nine points on their driving licences. This course is their last chance: get through it, and they have a reprieve. Don’t, and there’s no more driving for the foreseeable. Unfortunately they have to contend with Nikesh Patel’s stupendously annoying Abz, the course leader.
Like the ungodly offspring of Alan Partridge and Pauline from League of Gentlemen, Abz spouts patronising cliches and wields his leverage over the group like a cudgel: if they don’t go along with his course they can kiss driving bye bye. Nonetheless, he seems to genuinely want to help them better themselves. But what’s with his bizarre, therapy-like techniques? Why does he keep running off to answer his phone? And it is weird that everyone here is Asian?
No spoilers, but despite the fact we never leave Tomás Palmer’s magnificently mundane hotel function room set (complete with a real fish tank), Dada takes us on quite a journey over 80 minutes.
At first the playwright simply has fun with the characters and the set up. Patel’s uptight Abz is a lot of fun of...