Playhouse Creatures

It’s the swinging (16)60s, and ‘the merry monarch’ Charles II is on the throne. After violent civil war, England’s theatres have finally reopened and, for the first time, women are allowed to perform in public.

In the West End, grande dame Mrs Betterton (Anna Chancellor) rules the roost. But there’s a new face in town: an orange-seller with dreams of stardom.