Seven puppies in training for Guide Dogs UK spent an afternoon on the set of The Play That Goes Wrong at the Duchess Theatre, meeting the cast and watching extracts as part of their training.
Seven guide dog puppies walked onto a West End stage on Tuesday afternoon. Nothing went wrong.
The Play That Goes Wrong opened its set at the Duchess Theatre to Guide Dogs UK on 2 September, inviting seven puppies in training and their volunteer puppy raisers to meet the cast and watch extracts from the show. The puppies range in age from ten months to a year and five months.
They are Brett, a black Golden Retriever cross Labrador, with Catherine; Eddie, a yellow Labrador cross Golden Retriever, with Josh and Joe; Unice, a Golden Retriever, with Carol and Steve; Val, a black Golden Retriever cross Labrador, with Carol and Mark; Kenedie, a yellow Labrador, with Bridget; Seth, a yellow Labrador, with Peter; and Zadie, a yellow Labrador cross Golden Retriever, with Jeanette.
The point is not the photo opportunity. Puppies bound for guide dog work need to meet as much of the world as possible before they qualify, and a working theatre is a difficult room: dark, loud, full of strangers and sudden noise.
Clare Dilkes, Puppy Development Advisor at Guide Dogs UK, said: “Introducing our puppies to lots of different sights, sounds and smells early on is incredibly important. The aim of this visit is to familiarise the pups with surroundings they might find themselves in with future guide dog owners - including theatres! - and help them navigate any new situations calmly and confidently. Trips like this give them a chance to practice in a safe environment with the support of volunteer puppy raisers, so we’re grateful to The Play That Goes Wrong for inviting us.”
She added: “Our puppy raisers play a vital role in the journeys of future guide dogs, like Brett, Eddie, Unice, Val, Kenedie, Seth and Zodie. Without the loving homes and foundation these volunteers provide, we simply wouldn’t be able to train the hundreds of life-changing guide dogs we do each year to support people with sight loss. But we need more puppy raisers across the UK to help. I’d urge anyone with space in their heart and home for a guide dog puppy to visit Guide Dogs’ website to check what opportunities are available in their area and sign up.”
The production is following the visit with a fundraising week. Collections for Guide Dogs will be taken at the theatre from Tuesday 8 to Sunday 13 September. Anyone interested in raising a puppy can find the current openings on the Guide Dogs UK website.
There is a joke in the casting, and the show got there first. The Play That Goes Wrong already contains a hunt for Winston the dog, so a stage full of retrievers was, at the very least, thematically sound. The Cornley cast were reportedly keeping an eye out for good boys and clever girls, though nobody has confirmed it was a formal audition.
The current company is Ruby Ablett as Annie, Matthew Spencer as Chris, Raphael Bushay as Robert, Luke Wilson as Jonathan, Lucinda Turner as Sandra, Alex Bird as Dennis, Joshua Lendon as Max and Kieron Michael as Trevor, with understudies Paige Round, Harry Al-Adwani, Tom Quinn, Will Bishop and Phoenix Edwards.
Mischief’s comedy opened at the Duchess in September 2014, having started life at the Old Red Lion in front of four paying customers. Twelve years on it is still running, and the company behind it also has The Comedy About Spies at the Adelphi Theatre until 26 September 2026.
Guide Dogs on stage at The Play That Goes Wrong
Tickets for The Play That Goes Wrong are on sale now at the Duchess Theatre.
