John Godber: the ex-teacher who honed his skill through teenage drama students’ improvisations and who in turn offered us superb plays (perfect for exam pieces) is a truly unique writer. Those of us who were theatre goers in the ’70s remember him as a breath of fresh air.

By Angie Millard

Photos by Ian Hodgson

Shakers, Bouncers and Teachers were all snappy four-handers which provided a myriad of characters. Godber wanted to show us the underside of class up North, the realities facing the underprivileged and their ways of managing a life with few prospects. He pioneered the use of minimal staging and props.

Godber has not produced any plays in recent times which portrayed his sharp vision. The comedy seemed repetitious and predictable. His characters had become stereotypical but watching Do I Love You gave me that old joy. Godber had found a topic worthy of his skill and slowly he seemed to find his voice.

The play was premiered after COVID lockdown and has toured ever since partly because it captures the zeitgeist of ‘austerity Britain’ yet also shows us how a group of youngsters find a way out of this depression. His solution is to find some meaning in life and his three characters, Sally ( Martha Godber), Nat (Chloe Macdonald) and Kyle (Emilio Encinoso-Gil), find just this on a chance visit to Cleethorpes’ Beachcomber Entertainment, where, for £3, they are introduced to the phenomenon of Northern Soul. They are amazed to see older people dancing with a passionate intensity. They are captured by the power of the experience and before long Sally has ambitions to dance like them and go to Blackpool where Nat, playing a strange, ex-con and nefarious master of Northern soul, tells them “only the good dancers go.”

The dynamic of their friendship group alters and Sally begins to feel excluded. She considers Kyle her best friend and accuses Nat (who has slept with him) of ‘shitting  on her dinner!’ This in turn becomes a hilarious scene of repeated insults. In other scenes, Godber uses repetition to emphasise the monotony of their daily working lives using the phrase “would you like fries with that” to great effect.

The story progresses, punctuated by the Soul sounds and I felt that the audience wanted to see more of these dancing intervals. Two teenagers sitting next to me loved the music. Northern Soul had worked its magic!

There are many places where we discover more about the protagonists. Sally is the sole carer for her dying grandmother who is also a Northern Soul aficionado played with sensitivity by Chloe Macdonald using only a head scarf and a cigarette. We learn about the trio’s dead-end jobs in a fast food outlet, despite the two girls being graduates. The drudgery of their daily life is placed in contrast with their newly found passion and the play gathers momentum in the second half where Godber finds his rhythm in the pace of their dialogue.

The ensemble acting is outstanding. Sally is the driving force to achieve Blackpool standard and authenticity. Nat is the willing follower and Kyle superbly dances his way between them. The set is minimal and props are used significantly but above all else the choreography is outstanding thanks to Sally Maloy, former World Northern Dance Champion.

The king of soul tells them to ‘keep the faith’ and they certainly do.

Go along and see the resurrection of John Godber, playwright and director, and I promise you won’t be disappointed.

Do I Love You is being performed at York Theatre Royal from 10 to 14 June 2025.