"It's Christmas Day in a nameless state-run mental institution where the inmates are subjected to a tirade of mindless cruelty. A maniacal and self-obsessed leader breeds a contagion of hierarchical savagery amongst his staff, who thrive on a noxious diet of delusion and deceit.

The day got off to a lousy start! A death and a birth. Absolutely bloody scandalous! Is it too much to ask - to keep the place clean?

Under a veil of devilish wit and subversive humour, Pinter's biting political commentary on the perils of unchecked power is as vital and pertinent today as when it was written in the 50s."

The 2013 West End production is directed by Jamie Lloyd (Donmar's Passion etc), starring Simon Russell Beale (Privates on Parade, National Theatre's Timon of Athens and Collaborators) and John Simm (Elling, Sheffield Theatres' Hamlet and Betrayal).

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