In 'Allo 'Allo, the accent is on comedy

2 days ago
3 min read

How many ways can you say “Good morning”?

If you’re Officer Crabtree, a bumbling British spy posing as a French gendarme in World War 2 France, there’s only one way: “Good moaning!”

That mangled greeting became a byword in the 1990s for the hugely successful BBC comedy series ‘Allo ‘Allo, which dominated British (and Australian) television for no fewer than nine consecutive seasons. Officer Crabtree became world famous for his hilarious – and often unintentionally suggestive – attempts to blend into the French community.

For Bairnsdale actor Tomas Carrero, getting his tongue around the mutilated dialogue of Officer Crabtree is one of the biggest challenges he faces as he prepares to take on the iconic role in Bairnsdale Production Line’s October production of the stage version of ‘Allo ‘Allo. But for Tomas, getting the words right – or rather, wrong – is only the beginning.

“Crabtree is oblivious to the confusion and chaos he causes when he tries to speak fluent French, so he delivers everything with a completely straight face – he sees nothing funny in what he’s saying”, said Tomas during rehearsals this week. “But the reactions of the rest of the cast are genuinely hilarious, so I have to fight the urge to burst out laughing mid-sentence. It’s going to be even harder to resist when we have several hundred people in the audience, all laughing at what I’m trying to say!”

Tomas isn’t the only one mastering unfamiliar accents. Amongst the large cast there is only a handful of English accents - and certainly no Aussies. ‘Allo ‘Allo is set in a 1940s French café, after the German invasion, so in addition to café owner René and his wife, there are various other French waitresses, Resistance fighters and local villagers, alongside German military and Gestapo officers, and even one over-the-top Italian captain.

The accents are just one more layer of complexity, in a very complex comedy, for Director Susan Hawton to navigate.

“Mastering an accent without it becoming unintelligible is a challenge for any actor”, said Susan, “but I never met an actor who didn’t love a challenge – and that includes me. We have on stage a mixture of old hands and relative newcomers, but they’re all doing a terrific job, and I have no doubt they’ll be more than ready by opening night on October 15th”.

The fame of the TV series has evidently not faded. Bookings for ‘Allo ‘Allo took off as soon as tickets became available, and Production Line is looking forward to breaking a few attendance records as the next two months roll along.

In the meantime, for the hardworking cast, practice makes perfect, or, as Officer Crabtree might say, “Lactose makes prefect”.