This weekend, Durham’s getting a little weirder, a lot funnier, and delightfully ducking chaotic. Queen of the Quack, a raw, riotous, and deeply heartfelt dark comedy, hits the stage at Durham Fringe Festival tomorrow, and if you’re hunting for something bold, bizarre, and brutally honest, this is your golden egg.
Written by Sarah Rumfitt, directed by Jess Robson, and performed by the fearless Angela Rose, this one-woman show is far more than a quirky costume and a few laughs. It’s a blazing, feathered rallying cry from the heart of Northern working-class motherhood, stitched together between caring shifts, cold cups of coffee, and late-night existential crises.
But don’t be fooled by the duck-themed pyjamas or the oversized mascot head – Queen of the Quack is anything but soft and fluffy. This is theatre born in the trenches of real life: grief, identity loss, invisible labour, and the absurdity of trying to hold it all together when you’re falling apart. And yet – somehow – it’s hilarious.
“It’s messy, it’s loud, it’s real,” says director Jess Robson. “We’ve cried through rehearsals. We’ve laughed. Sometimes both at the same time. Honestly? I’ve danced in a field dressed as a duck. That’s the energy we’re bringing.”
Writer Sarah Rumfitt adds, “Two of us are mams – and that matters. We don’t see enough stories about women like us: working-class, creative, over thirty, still here and still fighting to be seen. This isn’t just a play – it’s a protest in feathers.”
Queen of the Quack is unapologetically Northern, deeply personal, and wildly surreal. Think miner’s grit meets meme culture. Think Dettol-scented breakdowns and duct-taped dreams. It’s a love letter to the ones holding families, friendships, and themselves together with stubborn humour and whatever’s to hand.
It’s also, crucially, a hell of a good night out.
If you like your theatre honest, your comedy dark, and your storytelling full of heart (and duck puns), this show was made for you. Whether you’re a parent, a carer, a survivor, or just someone who’s ever felt a bit broken and kept going anyway – Queen of the Quack will see you, move you, and probably make you snort-laugh.
Performing at the Durham Fringe Festival on 26th & 27th July.
Tickets available now at durhamfringe.co.uk/events/queen-of-the-quack
This weekend – get your ducks in a row, or don’t. Just get to the show. It’s going to be quacking brilliant.
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