MRS ORWELL Southwark Playhouse

Tony Cox’s very entertaining Mrs Orwell deserves a longer run. George Orwell married Sonia Brownell on his deathbed. 16 years his junior, she freely admits she doesn’t love him. So why does she marry “gloomy George”? It was generally thought, unfairly, that she had merely married him for his fame and the massive royalties from the hugely successful sales of Animal Farm. Peter Hamilton Dyer and Cressida Bonas are excellent.