The 'outrageous' play set to bring joy and laughter to the people of Grimsby

The cast of Hens -Credit:Ben Parkes
The cast of Hens -Credit:Ben Parkes


A Grimsby playwright who wanted to bring people laughter and happiness following the "doom and gloom" of the pandemic and cost of living crisis is gearing up to launch his larger-than-life play at the Caxton Theatre.

Ben Parkes, 35, said it has been a "labour of love" to write his newest play, Hens, which features a reluctant bride, a dishonourable Maid of Honour, the mother-in-law from hell, a flamboyant Swedish uncle, an accident-prone stripper and two battling bridesmaids.

Scheduled to premiere at the long-standing Cleethorpe Road theatre in June, "outrageous, bubbly and vibrant" Hens is a far cry from Ben's previous "dark" plays.

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Speaking to Grimsby Live, Ben said: "I studied Professional Writing at the University of Hull which taught me an awful lot, and it was there that I fell in love with writing for the stage.

"In 2016 I wrote a thriller play for the Caxton Theatre called Dead and Breakfast and in 2018 I wrote a black comedy called Smother about a dysfunctional family. They both did really well and had good feedback, but I earned myself a bit of a reputation as someone who wrote dark pieces.

Ben Parkes said it was a 'labour of love' writing Hens -Credit:Ben Parkes
Ben Parkes said it was a 'labour of love' writing Hens -Credit:Ben Parkes

"Then Covid hit and nobody really knew what the future of theatre looked like or if it would ever be the same. It was such an odd time. Before Covid, I liked watching really dark TV shows, films and plays, but the pandemic changed me a lot.

"I wanted to write something that would bring people joy and bring people together, because the last thing we want after all the doom and gloom in the world is dark, gritty and gruelling plays. People want to come along and have a good night out and a laugh."

Ben, who works for NAViGO, said the process of writing Hens was a "breath of fresh air".

-Credit:Caxton Theatre
-Credit:Caxton Theatre

"Hens was written last summer, I listened to a lot of cheesy pop music when I wrote it, and it was that bouncy type of music that inspired the tone of the play and made it very lively and outrageous and bubbly and loud and vibrant," he said.

"I think all my stuff has had comedy there but this is the first time comedy has been at the forefront of one of my plays, it's a very kind of broad comedy which I haven't done before. The whole process was much more enjoyable.

"It's been a real labour of love and we've got a great, committed cast who are throwing themselves into it."

Hens will be shown from Saturday, June 8 to Saturday, June 15 each day except for Sunday. Tickets can be bought on the Caxton Theatre website here or at the Fishing Heritage Centre (card only).