Off West End
A Darkly Comic Study of Youth and Illusion
Philip Ridley’s The Fastest Clock in the Universe blends dark humour with psychological unease. Centred on Cougar Glass, a man who obsessed with staying young, this play begins as eccentric and slightly unnerving, and then gradually exposes themes of vanity, loneliness and self-deception.
To keep the illusion of his youth, Cougar celebrates his ‘nineteenth’ birthday every year with his older partner, Captain Tock, surrounded by stuffed birds and above an abandoned London fur factory. Meticulous plans, a specially chosen guest of honour, a birthday cake, and a sharp knife all combine to create a modern Dorian Gray.
This production by Cellar Door Theatre, directed by Brittany Rex, marks the play’s first London revival since 2013 and benefits from direct involvement from Ridley himself, who collaborated in rehearsal for four weeks.
A Slow Build with Strong Foundations
The first half plays almost like a two-hander, focusing on Cougar and Captain Tock and their straining relationship. Their slightly warped dynamic anchors the play and allows tension to gradually build throughout the first half, laying the foundations for the latter half of the play. The intimacy of the Studio space heightens the tense, menacing atmosphere, and makes every silence and shift in energy feel immediate and uneasy.
Dark Humour and Shifting Impact
Ridley’s script mixes surreal and strange humour with moments that edge into taboo material, which constantly pulls the audience between laughter and discomfort. However, it does feel that much of what may have felt shocking in 1992, lands as stylised edginess in places so maybe the impact is lost on a more modern audience.
Characters Bought To Life
Cougar Glass dominates the first half, and Frederick Russell gives him a layered menace that balances charm with instability. He controls the stage with ease and draws everything and everyone effortlessly towards him.
In the second half, that dominance fractures and he is increasingly overshadowed yet remains a constant presence. His continuous silence becomes one of the production’s most unsettling elements, shifting him to a watchful and almost predatory observer.
The ensemble is strong throughout, and Naomi Preston-Low as Sherbert Gravel emerges as a standout. She brings sharp wit, energy and welcome comedic relief, lifting the tone whenever she appears.
Brian Aris offers a steady Captain Tock, while Kim Whatmore’s Foxtrot Darling provides an innocence that contrasts effectively with the surrounding darkness.
When Tension Meets Spectacle
A late fight sequence is well choreographed and sharply executed, but it slightly disrupts the carefully built psychological tension. While visually striking, it feels more like spectacle than narrative necessity, briefly shifting focus away from the slow-burn unease that has driven the production.
Final Thoughts
The Fastest Clock in the Universe remains a strange, unsettling piece that explores youth and identity with dark humour and emotional bite.
What lingers most is Cougar’s transformation: beginning as a magnetic, almost all-powerful presence before gradually being pushed to the margins. Even in silence, he remains deeply unsettling, watching rather than acting, and it is in that shift that the production finds its most effective tension.
Beneath the surreal humour and occasional moments of stylised edginess, there is a quiet sadness running through the piece. In a culture still fixated on youth and reinvention, Cougar’s refusal to age feels both absurd and uncomfortably familiar.
Written by Helena Featherstone
Thank you to Cellar Door Theatre for providing a recording of this performance for this review.
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