Three couples, two homes, one laugh-out-loud domestic farce. Here are six things you need to know about How the Other Half Loves, Alan Ayckbourn‘s comedy of sex, class and marital misunderstanding.
Time to read 1 Minute
Author The Old Vic
Published 23/06/2026
It’s one of the great British comedies
One of Alan Ayckbourn’s break-out plays, How the Other Half Loves packs blistering comedy and social commentary into a tightly constructed domestic story.
It’s the morning after a drunken night out
Fiona Foster and Bob Phillips have been out until the early hours. Now their spouses want to know what they were up to. Reluctant to reveal the truth, Fiona and Bob find what appears to be the perfect alibi — the Featherstones.
In Ayckbourn’s fast-paced comedy, mayhem ensues as Fiona and Bob’s deception deepens.
Two home lives overlap on one stage
The action takes place in the Fosters’ and Phillips’ houses simultaneously. Their homes and their home lives are contained on one stage.
The action happens in the early 1970s
We’re in a world of landlines and sherry. Elvis and Cilla Black are on the record player. Pineapple chunks are on the menu.
Against this backdrop Ayckbourn plays with stereotypes about how men and women behave in relationships.
Roger Allam and Dorothy Atkinson play the well-to-do Fosters
Roger Allam is Frank, a creature of routine and the boss of his department at work. Dorothy Atkinson plays his wife Fiona, polite and steady on the surface, but with an acerbic wit.
They are joined by Ayesha Antoine, Laura Elsworthy, Adam Gillen and Rowan Polonski.
It was written to be performed In The Round
Ayckbourn wrote How the Other Half Loves with the In The Round stage at the Library Theatre, Scarborough in mind.
This production returns Ayckbourn’s classic to the In The Round staging it was written for.
