HOME AT SEVEN
By R C Sherriff
Directed by Claire Evans
It sometimes happens that an innocent man needs more protection than a guilty one.
It’s one of those things that might happen to anybody.
This production is the first professional London revival of Home at Seven
since the West End premiere in 1950, which starred Ralph Richardson. It is
being presented by Claire Evans, in association with the R C Sherriff Trust,
marking the 50th anniversary of the death of its writer R C Sherriff, best
known for his World War I play, Journey’s End.
Home at Seven takes place five years after the end on the Second World War.
The country is still recovering from years of bomb damage. Its people
continue to endure rationing and are trying to restore normality after six years
when everything had been turned on its head.
It’s the little lies, the white lies that catch us out. The lies we tell to defend and
protect our innocence. We all break rules, we all tell inconsistent stories, but
does this mean that we are more likely to be guilty? David Preston is at the
centre of this gripping mystery drama. An ordinary decent citizen, he is caught
in a waking nightmare when he returns home from work to his wife to find that
24 hours have elapsed without him even realising it. It is now a day later than
he thought. As hard as he tries, he cannot recall the events of the missing day
or explain away evidence that implicates him in theft and murder.