FANS of romantic comedy should be able to induce themselves when A Passionate Woman comes to Malvern shortly.

Liza Goddard (Bergerac, Yes Honestly) plays Betty, a passionate, doting mum who finds it hard to accept that her son is leaving home to get married.

Kay Mellor’s (In The Club, Fat Friends; Band of Gold; The Syndicate) romantic comedy will be appearing at Malvern’s Festival Theatre from Tuesday, March 28 to Saturday, April 1.

On the morning of her son’s wedding, Betty retreats to her attic where she relives her long-lost youth and the love affair she had in the 1960s.

Surrounded by her memories and ghosts from her past, Betty finds herself torn between a husband she never loved, a son about to leave and the man she shared a passionate affair with.


Paul Milton, the Everyman’s creative director, directs this production, and says: “It’s a real feel-good play with a Shirley Valentine flavour to it: lots of romance, comedy and charm.

“It’s set in the present day, but has flashbacks to the 1960s.”

And he added: “The writer, Kay Mellor, is well-known to television audiences – she wrote The Syndicate, Band of Gold and In The Club.

"The play was a West End hit in the 1990s and was televised in 2010, when it starred Sue Johnston and Billie Piper. It’s the perfect play for a good night out!” 


The chief executive of the Everyman Theatre, Geoffrey Rowe,  added: “The Everyman set a policy three years ago now to mount a production each year and tour to good drama venues. I am delighted that Kay Mellor allowed us to present her moving and funny play A Passionate Woman, newly updated by her, for this tour. Liza Goddard is absolutely perfect for the leading role.”