"The Last Laugh" by Paul Hendy.

Nottingham Theatre Royal.

"The Last Laugh" is a fairly new play which started off at the Edinburgh Fringe and imagines three of the world's best comedians, Tommy Cooper, Bob Monkhouse and Eric Morecambe, together in a dressing room chatting about the secret of life, death, comedy and what it means to be funny. The play started off as a short film.

Looking at the three actors playing these iconic comedy stars, you probably wouldn't be able to guess which of the trio they play, and that is where the wigs and make up shine, because after the make up goes on and the transformation is complete, they really do resemble Cooper, Morecambe and Monkhouse, especially with those facial nuances and the voices in place, the transformation was spectacular, as well as spooky.

I grew up watching these legendary comedians on the box and they still are funnier than most of the comedians that are around today. Funny is funny, no matter how old the gags are. Christmas was not Christmas without the Morecambe and Wise show and their ultimate celebrity guest list. Who can forget Andre Previn, Shirley Bassey, Glenda Jackson and Angela Rippon?

Bob Monkhouse's list of TV gameshows; I loved watching "The Golden Shot" and "Celebrity Squares", classic Saturday night TV where the whole family gathered around the box, trying to answer the questions. Bob's ability to create a gag from any given subject left his audiences, from Grandparents to University students, rolling in the aisles.

Tommy Cooper's TV shows also provided an opportunity to show what a one off comedian he was. His magic was cleverly shown to be a disaster, but behind that image, Cooper was a master of the art and a member of the Magic Circle. I can remember watching his final appearance in 1984 on "Live From Her Majesty's".

I also grew up watching Paul Hendy on TV, and it was a big surprise to find Paul in the audience. Another surprise was to come in the Q&A section after the interval when Gary Morecambe, Eric's son, was involved in the Q&A, completing what was a very special night.

Damian Williams is Toomy Cooper, the comedian who all he had to do was walk onto a stage to get a laugh, even before uttering his first word, and sometimes even not leaving the dressing room for about twenty odd minutes, getting his son to prod the stage curtain while Tommy was getting ready and talking from a microphone in the room. All three of these legends are embroided into my childhood, my parents were massive fans of all three. Damian is a tall man and he is the first on stage, towering over us all, unmistakably Tommy. His alcohol weakness played out, as well as his obvious health issues, but joking all the way through. His infidelities are also highlighted. Damian, via Tommy's unbeatable and clever wit was explained in several backstage secrets, who else could make walking through a white gate comical?

Simon Cartwright is Bob Monkhouse. I've always been a fan of clever comedy, and Bob was an incredibly intelligent and prolific comedy writer; his jokes are honed, or as Monkhouse described it, "chiselled" to perfection. His timing has always been impeccable, and then there's his encyclopedic knowledge of comedy and rapier sharp memory. He could recall who were the authors of all the jokes and where they were first aired and by whom. What is just as impressive though was Simon's ability to look like Bob's twin, and that voice was like having Bob there himself; it was quite unnerving just how much he looked and sounded like Bob Monkhouse, and he had all the physical nuances.

Steve Royle is Eric Morecambe. Like Simon, the physicality is amazingly accurate, and of course we had a selection of some of Eric's classic lines and memories, especially from working with Little Ern. There were a few things that were brought to life that I certainly weren't aware of Eric Morecambe's hidden talents. One was that Eric played the ukelele, something that Steve had to learn for the role.

The evening is one of comedy and happiness but throughout there are slivers of darkness which also has a supernatural twist at the end, made all the more eerie by some spectacularly clever lighting effects, designed by Johanna Town.

The Q&A was hosted by Richard Hodder, who is also the Understudy for all three characters.

Directed and written by Paul Hendy, who as I mentioned earlier was in the audience. It must be lovely for the Director/Writer to actually see the reaction from an audience, a reaction that showed the love for all three of these legends of comedy and entertainment. It wasn't like watching a play, more like eavesdropping on three pals chatting away with a common denominator being bringing happiness to the people.

The Set Designer is Lee Newby. A static set which shows a dressing room from days gone by. One wall shows a plethora of old playbills, depicting shows gone by; the other a portrait gallery of comedy stars from their career peaks; stars like Tony Hancock, Sid James, Max Miller, Arthur Askey etc. I wonder whose picture has been removed, as shown by a cleaner square of wall where once a picture had been hung; well that question was answered at the close of the play.

Lighting Design is by Johanna Town with Sound Design by Callum Willis. As mentioned earlier, the lighting played a big part in this show which also dropped certain hints, and created the supernatural feel of the play. No spoilers though, but is incredibly affective visually. The sound levels and mix was perfect.

The Composer and Musical Arranger is Ethan Lewis Maltby. Four songs are featured in the show, which also highlighted Steve Royle's ukelele skills. George Formby's "Little Stick Of Blackpool Rock" brought the trio together for a rousing rendition of, "Following You Around" and the Tony hatch/Jackie Trent penned song, "Positive Thinking", as well as "A Funny Way To Be A Hero", which is an original song penned by Paul Hendy, Jemma Donnelly and Ethan Lewis Maltby.

Craig Forrest-Thomas is the Wig Designer and the creation of Simon Cartwright's Monkhouse wig was perfection, along with the make-up and those eyebrows. When all three of the cast came out after the interval, out of costume, you really could appreciate just how much wigs and make up can make to an actor, especially when portraying a person as recognisable as these three.

Costume Designer is Amy Chamberlain. The dinner jackets at the end of the show were typical class, which matched the class of the performers. Tommy Cooper's initial costume immediately brought guffaws of laughter without uttering a word, reflective of his stage shows of course.

This show is a beautiful homage to three of the most iconic and intelligent comedians the world has ever known. There have been no comedians that have come within miles of this trio for class, style and comedic value, and I don't think there ever will. They are all one offs who all deserve the label of "genius", and thank goodness there are people like Paul Hendy, Damian Williams, Simon Cartwright and Steve Royle who keep their joy and cleverness alive, giving us all who were not lucky enough to see any of them live on stage the opportunity to do just that.

"The Last laugh" is at the Nottingham Theatre Royal until Saturday 5 September, and then they'll be gone, just like that!

Photography by Pamela Raith.