To paraphrase that other musical starring household pets: the naming of gangs is a difficult matter / It isn’t just one of your holiday games. How Julian, Dick, Anne, George and Timmy come to label their intrepid collective is a question threaded throughout Elinor Cook and Theo Jamieson’s musical adaptation of The Famous Five.
Cook’s script imbues Enid Blyton’s eponymous adventurers with a contemporary sensibility, emulating a recognisable Blytonesque vibe but with an original narrative. Less concerned with shipwrecks and spies, the fate of humanity now lies in their hands. Here, Uncle Quentin is neglecting his fatherly duties to develop a synthetic algae that can be used as a source of renewable energy. But a vengeful ex-colleague appears on the beaches of Kirrin Island, threatening to derail his hope of repairing a damaged planet.
