Edinburgh Fringe 2026
Quentin Blake’s Mrs Armitage on Wheels
Presented by esk and Roast Productions
Genre: Children's Theatre, Musical Theatre, Puppetry
Venue: Assembly
Festival: Edinburgh Fringe
Low Down
Mrs Armitage is a brilliant and eccentric inventor whose wild and wonderful creations are always remarkably useful. When she and her faithful dog Breakspear set off on a quiet bike ride to visit cousin Angela, she can’t stop thinking of ways to improve her bike. But after adding horns, snack trays, umbrellas, a dog bed and even a sail, will she ever get there?
Review
A shed and a bicycle are on the stage as we enter – and soon two friendly characters and a white dog arrive. Mrs Armitage sings “It’s a new day!” with gusto setting the tone for the show. A neighbour, Harry and Mrs Armitage engage in brief interactions with Breakspear, her dog. It’s a lovely opening scene evoking the countryside and we can certainly relax – to be fully entertained by the cast of three and this delightful, brand new musical adaptation of the award-winning BBC animated series.
The eccentric Mrs Armitage is an inventor who fixes things that improve everyone’s lives. She is well known around the area for her innovative gadgets and she is currently on the way to visit a friend and seeks to make her own journey more comfortable such as finding ingenious ways to wash her hands while cycling cross country.
Lottie Johnson plays Mrs Armitage, Duncan Taylor and Chris Dobson play several different characters and manipulate puppets. The main puppet, Breakspear is manipulated by Taylor – he is an adorable large white dog puppet with long floppy ears. At the full size of a large dog the puppet is beautifully crafted with an expressive face, well articulated legs and is well received by the audience. The puppeteers are always in view, which works well. Other creative puppets are a lovely family of hedgehogs and some singing backpacks!
Mrs Armitage’s shed opens, expanding the set across the stage to show typical household supplies we all might have, but she uses each one differently! She may use a piece of hose pipe or a funnel but as something unexpected, in fact, all her practical inventions cobble together a variety of objects in an unusual way to serve a new purpose! This is excellent recycling and up cycling that should motivate us to repurpose our stuff!
As a new musical theatre piece for children directed and adapted by Samantha Lane, it includes several snappy songs, with music and lyrics by Jessie Maryon Davies, sung live by combinations of the cast in solos, duos and trios. The songs are melodic, spiritedly sung – and they are witty! Fascinating characters played by Dobson and Taylor are the jaunty neighbour Harry, Phil the farmer who needs help with his sheep, and Maureen, an elderly neighbour seeking a device to help her reach the mail box. Mrs Armitage agrees that these are problems and what does she do? Fix them, of course! In one case she drills a few things together to produce a super deluxe solution!
All the way through Breakspear, the dog is not only a loyal companion but he also helps find solutions in his own way! His expressive tail wags and his lively movement shows his personality very effectively! A recurring theme is a letter and this is also played by a puppet, which is like a charming running joke throughout!
This production is of high quality and very well directed, designed and performed. The cast is excellent, especially Johnson who plays Mrs Armitage with verve and polish as if she is performing in the West End. As a children’s entertainment it is excellent. The cast is so enthusiastic that you can’t help becoming engaged in every part of this entertaining show!
