High up on any list of a few of my favourite things would be the music of Queen, the writing of Ben Elton, a bit of sci-fi and some musical theatre.
So why was We Will Rock You, a combination of all the above, at the Millennium Centre, not ticking all my boxes?
p It definitely wasn’t the music, the performances or the choreography. It was more the feeling that I had seen it all before. The post-apocalyptic setting for this rock 'n' roll musical has been seen in everything from Mad Max to Waterworld – and some of the dialogue felt equally predictable… disappointing from the man who penned the Blackadder scripts.
That said, the sublime soundtrack fizzed and the charm of the performances meant the show rattled along, packed with good humour and fun.
Unlikely villain Rhydian Roberts, as Khashoggi, was a revelation. Despite an album nominated for the Classical Brits and a serious reputation, he assimilated the character of the evil henchman with ease, it was just a shame that his foil, the Killer Queen (Tiffany Graves), was played as sleazy rather than sinister. Growling through the lyrics doesn’t necessarily equal sexy sadistic tendencies. Sometimes it just sounds as if you have a sore throat.
Storming performance
Another reality show star Noel Sullivan, is probably best remembered for his stint in Hear’Say, but he should be able to leave the plastic-pop genre behind him following his assured performance as Galileo, while Amanda Coutts as Scaramouche had all the rock 'n' roll attitude that this hapless dreamer lacked in a spirited interpretation of the Essex-girl hero.
The second biggest surprise of the evening was a storming performance from Ian Reddington as Pop. Part spaced-out hippy, part guardian of rock 'n' roll’s heritage and part philosopher, Reddington, best remembered for his roles as drummer Vernon in Coronation Street and Tricky Dickie from EastEnders, was spot-on. Funny, touching and 100% believable.
But the biggest – and best – surprise of the whole production, and something that lifted the show into the stratosphere, was the shock appearance of Queen’s lead guitarist Brian May, who ambled nonchalantly on stage during the encore performance of Bohemian Rhapsody and played.
They say you should never come face to face with your heroes. Don’t you believe it. The atmosphere had more electricity than a power surge in a generating station. The buzz was so strong you could taste it.
Instantly We Will Rock You was added to that list of a few of my favourite things.
We Will Rock You is at Wales Millennium Centre until Sunday, April 17. For ticket availability, call the ticket office on 029 2063 6464 .
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