Mark Thomas delivers a blistering, unmissable performance in Ordinary Decent Criminal, embodying not just Frankie – the ex-addict, ex-student and one-time political firebrand now serving 3.5 years for drug dealing – but every inmate who crosses his path.

The main part of the drama is set in the shiny, “more Tony Blair than Maggie Thatcher”, replacement for Strangeways Prison. Through Frankie’s eyes, we meet tragic Kenny’s vulnerability, DeNiro’s brooding menace, Bron’s volatility, and Belfast Tony’s deceptively charming swagger. Thomas slips between them with effortless precision, shifting voice, stance, and energy in a heartbeat.

The set pieces he acts out aren’t just vivid character sketches, they ratchet up a sense of growing tension within the prison walls, each scene tightening the screw. Amid the claustrophobia, we glimpse Frankie’s personal heartbreak: a raw, tender account of the betrayal and loss he endures at the hands of his drug-addict girlfriend, a wound that cuts deeper than his sentence.

The writing is lean, unsentimental, and laced with dark humour.  A highlight is Mark’s razor-sharp, very funny recap for latecomers – seamlessly welcoming them into the performance without breaking the tension.

By the end, one man on a sparse stage has conjured up a whole prison – its noise, its boredom, its acts of defiance – leaving the audience breathless. Raw, urgent and unforgettable, this is blistering theatre at its very best.

*****

Reviewed by Rona