The Constituent is a waste of James Corden

The production has some interesting names involved and there’s no question – after the murders of Labour MP Jo Cox in 2016 and Conservative MP David Amess in 2016 – that it’s time to consider very carefully the risks politicians face in engaging with the public.

The script is, however, the problem. There is a scene at the beginning with Corden as an increasingly menacing constituent talking to Maxwell Martin’s MP and it goes on for what feels like an eternity. Various issues are raised but they are dealt with cursorily. The play is about a serious subject, but it seems only vaguely interested in it.

Corden and Maxwell Martin do what they can to lift it, but it seems flat. Rob Howell’s minimalist set design scarcely helps with nothing much to look at but its two stars sitting at a desk, and, beyond them, the punters sitting on the other side of the theatre yawning.

The arrival of Zachary Hart’s stock police officer charged with protecting the MP makes it take on a surreal quality with violence employed as a last-ditch attempt to liven things up.

There is no interval, which is just as well as I have a feeling a lot of restless punters would otherwise have bailed out. It really should have been clear to all involved that the script just isn’t very good and it’s a bit of a waste of everyone’s time.