The reviews are in for Big Love, a one-man show written and directed by David Brady and performed by Samuel Warren at the Lion and Unicorn Theatre in Kentish Town, where it closes the Here | For 2026 season of new work. Warren plays Sam, a romantic who believes in grand gestures and will not answer the red telephone ringing on the far side of the stage, while Brady runs the sound and lights in full view and joins in the banter. Five of the six critics found it warm, funny and quietly moving, with Warren’s easy rapport with the audience at the heart of it; the one dissenter liked the actor but found the hour too scattered to add up.
3.8 / 5 from 6 criticsThe verdict: six reviews in, all of them rated: five four-star notices and one two-and-a-half, an average of 3.8 out of 5. The four-star camp is won over by Warren’s rapport with the room, the audience participation and a turn towards tenderness in the closing stretch. The Reviews Hub is the exception, liking Warren but finding a string of ideas that are raised and then dropped. The run is short and ends on Saturday 7 November.
What are critics saying about Big Love?
Theatre Weekly
Reviewer: Katie Shaw
Shaw reads the show as a love letter to small, everyday gestures and enjoys the running exchange between Sam and Brady at the sound desk. She notes the comic surface giving way to something more vulnerable as the hour goes on.
"It’s warm-hearted and thought-provoking while also being incredibly funny and silly; a brilliant piece of theatre."
She can picture it growing into a bigger piece, or even a short film, but thinks it works perfectly well as it is.
Everything Theatre
"A charming, feel-good show about human connection that is one big hug for the audience."
Reviewer: Rob Warren
Rob Warren sees a departure for Proforca: less a story than a stream of thought, which puts the whole evening on the performer’s shoulders.
"That audience work is remarkably impressive, the ad-libbing spot on as he asks us to be part of this show"
He likes Brady as the on-stage foil, with one reservation: the sound loses some clarity when the volume goes up.
London Pub Theatres Magazine
"Romantic, mysterious and warm hearted"
Reviewer: Heather Jeffery
Jeffery admits she did not expect it to be her kind of show, and found the opening scenes almost childlike, but says the mood shifts and something more unsettling and heartfelt comes through.
"Likely to be marmite, but highly recommended for the romantics amongst you, for anyone who wants a diversion from the mundane."
She also applauds the Here | For season itself as a platform for companies ready for bigger things.
Read Heather Jeffery’s full review at London Pub Theatres Magazine
The Peg
"All You Need…"
Reviewer: Simon Ward
Ward enjoys a piece that openly shows its workings, with lighting cues called from the stage and an unpressed button and an unanswered phone waiting in opposite corners. He finds its case that love lives in small things rather than grand gestures genuinely touching.
"This is a funny piece which manages to send itself up while also taking itself seriously, a difficult feat."
theatrereviews.design
"a gloriously chaotic celebration of love, laughter and the songs that touch the heart"
Reviewer: D. C. Jackson
Jackson is won over by the confetti-strewn party atmosphere and by the cards on which each audience writes down something it loves, which build into a wall that grows with every performance. The use of Edith Piaf’s Hymne à l’amour lands with particular force.
"I genuinely cannot remember the last time I laughed so hard at a theatre performance."
The Reviews Hub
"Bitty Love"
Reviewer: Richard Maguire
Maguire rates Warren as a confident, engaging performer but finds the show disjointed, with threads such as unsent messages, a game of The Sims and the do-not-press button raised and then left behind. He is especially disappointed that the cards the audience fill in are set aside in favour of scripted ones, and singles out the nightclub dance as the one moment that excites him.
"We have big love for Sam Warren, but not so much for the play."
For more from London’s fringe, see our roundups of The Moth at the Finborough Theatre and Memoriam at Southwark Playhouse Borough.
Big Love runs at the Lion and Unicorn Theatre in Kentish Town until Saturday 7 November 2026, with performances at 7.30pm. The show lasts about an hour.
For more information, visit the official website.
