Cable Street review: a beautiful celebration of the East End

When I first heard about the show, I expected it to be a serious play exploring the differences between society in the 1930s. But it’s a musical, performed by a talented cast with super-strong voices. The songs come thick and fast, they’re catchy and much of the music is performed by the on-stage cast.

The story is told through three families who live in the same tower block facing the same challenges: rising rents and financial pressures.

One family comprises an alcoholic mother and a son who gets involved with the blackshirts. Another is a black woman who works in the Jewish bakery. And she falls in love with the Jewish character Sammy, who - despite his family’s wishes - gets heavily involved in the anti-fascist movement.

The clashes divide the country - this is illustrated through singing actors playing newspapers. Yes, they play newspapers. It lightened the mood and poked fun at the different corners of the press.

The cast play multiple characters, something I often find confusing. Yet the tight cast manages to make it work. The staging is simple, made mainly of tables and chairs.

Plenty of the political tensions raised in the production still feel relevant today: antisemitism is on the rise and protests - sometimes including violence - are commonplace on the capital’s streets.

Although, I think the show tries too hard to link Mosley’s mob to Nigel Farage’s Reform UK, even lighting up the fascists in turquoise blue (the colour associated with Reform).

I wasn’t a huge fan of the ending - it was a bit too good to be true. The fighting neighbours all become friends, turning their focus to protesting against the landlords driving up rents.

It’s about to travel to America and play off-Broadway - this success is richly deserved.

Cable Street is at Marylebone Theatre until 28th February.