Two Plays: “Darwin’s­ Bulldog bites Soapy Sam” & “Mrs Darwin Entertains”

The LGBT Humanist Association presents Two Plays: “Darwin’s­ Bulldog bites Soapy Sam” & “Mrs Darwin Entertains” We will perform two plays especially written by Terry Sanderson President of the National Secular Society to mark Darwin Day which is an annual event “Celebrating Darwin Science and Humanity”. DARWIN’S BULLDOG BITES SOAPY SAM. Imagine you’ve been invited to a debate organised by the British Association for the Advancement of Science at Oxford University. The date is June 20th 1860. 700 people are crammed into the room many of them Anglican clergy. There is tension in the air. There is a huge sense of anticipation. The debate is between the scientist TH Huxley (“Darwin’s Bulldog”) and the Anglican Bishop of Oxford (“Soapy Sam”). In a hugely and sometimes near-riotous debate they slug it out arguing about the newly published theories of Charles Darwin in the light of “On the Origin of Species”. The debate between science and religion laid bare and for Victorian society nothing will ever be the same again. MRS DARWIN ENTERTAINS. On the eve of the great debate a reporter from The Times interviews Mrs Darwin and is anxious to know what her views really are about religion and the theories of her husband. CAST: Soapy Sam: Terry Sanderson Darwin’s Bulldog: Derek Lennard Times Reporter: Richard Unwin Mrs Darwin: Tessa Hatts Admission Free. Booking advised via website.