I think it is clear why St Joan of the Stockyards has seldom been revived. At one point Joan steps out of character to exclaim, ‘I don’t know what’s going on in this play anymore!’ and I suspect that many in the audience will feel the same, for the ‘oily machinations’ of the businessmen are presented in a bewilderingly complex fashion. . . I enjoyed the skill, energy and commitment of the young actors, but I couldn’t help feeling that they deserved a better play with which to demonstrate their considerable talents.

The show has the warm, cosy feel of a picture book come to life. The set and costumes washed in an amber glow have a lovely wrapped-up-against-the-cold-world tinge. It also has a very inspiring ‘make do and mend’ ethos . . . If you are planning to take a small person to their first ever live show this Christmas you couldn’t hope for better than this.

The British are funny about their Christmas traditions; you can tamper with them so far, but no further. It is a time of excess and that goes for the acting as well – no naturalism please, we’re British. It is a brave director who strays too far from the path of righteousness. Sally Cookson is that director . . . This is a show full of invention and fun, which tickles the tradition into a giggling somersault only to land right side up giving us the perfect fillip to the season of good-will.

Thomas Kilroy’s play is set in a small village in the neutral Republic of Ireland during the Second World War. With the rest of Europe going up in flames the fledgling Republic’s stance was a kind of denial of the realities of geopolitics at the time as attempts were made to carry on to carry on as if times were normal – which of course they weren’t.

In folklore, Nightjars are emblematic portends of death. We hear the song of the bird at crucial junctures in this story. But despite the shadowy nature of the tale, Roberts’ writing always manages to dance along. These men are not two-dimensional . . . Bea Roberts’s piece leaves us with some hope, that even between two ageing and failing men there can be connection and resolve, even love. She is a writer who is equally at ease with farce and ferocity. Recommended