The great, dark, looming presence of the black cross – stage height – against a blood red background seemed to herald the doing away with nods and winks as far as the play’s religious content was concerned. This was an unambiguous statement. Here was Big Brother about to do his worst.

Grand operas on tour can be great unwieldy monsters, hugely expensive to stage and with eye-watering ticket prices to match. Not so where Pop-Up Opera are concerned, for they specialise in making opera more accessible and welcoming to a wider audience than is normally associated with this ‘elitist’ art form. Less grand perhaps, but a great deal more user-friendly.

The Experimental Theatre Club in Oxford is prone to choosing challenging plays, and their latest choice is no different . . . Helen and Danny are a young couple, quietly celebrating the news that they’re expecting their second child, when Helen’s brother Liam arrives in their home covered in blood. He tells the story of how he discovered a lad injured in the street, and the couple offer to help him, but as the play unravels they begin to realise that Liam’s account of the evening might not be entirely accurate . . .