As sitcoms go, Rentaghost was always a bit different from your average 70s show, for a start it was targeted at children. The idea revolved around a small group of ghosts who had formed an organisation where people could hire them to perform unique tasks. While this doesn't exactly smack of ideal musical fodder, for a generation of today's adults Rentaghost was amazingly popular and still has a somewhat cult following.
 | | Joe Pasquale helped create the show |
Now a musical version of the hit show makes its way to Bristol's Hippodrome Theatre on 2nd April. Former I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here winner Joe Pasquale has not only written Rentaghost: The Musical, based on the BBC TV series that he loved but he is also producing the show in association with Ghostly Productions. The show features Fred Mumford, the man who fell to his death from a cross-channel ferry; Hubert Davenport, the elegant Victorian ghost; jester Timothy Claypole and nutty Hazel McWitch, as they attempt to haunt Maudlin Manor. In 2001, Rentaghost came 12th in a Channel 4 poll of the 100 Greatest Kids’ TV shows, which demonstrates the influence and popularity of the show for a whole generation of children - and their parents! Now grandparents, and mums and dads can take the youth of today to this mystical show to see if they can re-create their own childhood and introduce their own kids to some spooky Rentaghost magic. But why recreate a musical for children based on a programme they would never have seen? We asked Joe: Q: Why did you want to do a musical of Rentaghost? It was one of my obsessions as a kid, as well as that of the show’s producer Shaun Cornell. | "I think a whole generation of kids my age in the 70s were obsessed too, as there was no other TV show like it!" | | Joe Pasquale on his love for Rentaghost. |
I think a whole generation of kids my age in the 70s were obsessed too, as there was no other TV show like it - it was the predecessor of all this Harry Potter and ghosty stuff that’s around these days, and I was really keen on magic and ghostly stuff when I was a kid. So it seems natural for me to write a show around it. Shaun and I sat down and discussed it for a couple of hours, and neither of us could come up with a reason why a show of Rentaghost wouldn't work - we just sat there laughing about it and reminiscing about the great characters, and we thought that if we both loved it so much, there must be a big nostalgia element attached that meant most of the country would love it as well. It's been great fun to work on, and sometimes the meetings about it have descended into lunacy. It’s great to be in on the ground floor of a project like this, and involved in the business as well as the creative end. Hopefully mums and dads will come to see the show and encourage their kids to watch something they watched as children. Q: How far do you and Shaun go back? We met in 1988, and I used to sleep on his floor when he was stage crew at Butlins, and I was the warm-up comic - he insists I was rubbish! I set myself on fire the first night I was on stage, and he came backstage and laughed himself silly, and we became big mates from that point on. That friendship means that we can work on a show like Rentaghost together. Q: When did you come up with the idea for the show?
 | | Sue Nicholls pre Coronation Street |
Sean and I have been thinking about it for years, but it was when I was in the Australian jungle for I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! that I was able to give it some really serious thought. After that, we just sat down and said "why don't we do it ourselves?" and so we set up Ghostly Productions to put the show on. Q: Does the show have the blessing of its creator, Bob Block? Very much so. Q: Was it a chore for you to write the show? Not at all. I watched the original TV show on DVD and that was a great inspiration. I've stayed close to the spirit of the show and the characters, but not the same stories. Q: If you were in the show, which character would you like to play? The jester, Timothy Claypole, but it was a conscious decision for me not to be in it as I've got so many irons in the fire at the moment. Q: You might not be physically in the show, but we can hear you, can't we? Lord Edward Maudlin is the guy who runs Maudlin Manor where the show is set, and his grandfather, Edward Maudlin Senior Senior, who thought his children were irresponsible before he died in 1798, possessed the marble bust of himself, and that’s the voice I do.
 | | Rentaghost: The Musical |
Edward died due to a freak accident involving a brown fluffy slipper and a leaping Schnauzer. He’s so bored that he’s there to create some mayhem with constant heckling, sarcastic comments, stupid rhymes - just the kind of thing you might expect from me... Q: There’s a talking moose too! When you do a set that’s the inside of a manor house, there are certain things you can't avoid - statues, suits of armour and stuffed moose’s heads. So we put in Reginald Moose QC - the title gives him a certain air of grandeur. Q: How difficult was it to cast a show that so many people remember so vividly? We did a three-day audition at Pineapple Studios in London, and for seven roles we saw 420 people. We had an open audition one day and we got into trouble because we jammed up the entire building! We thought about what the characters looked like, which is inevitable, and it's always in the back of your head when you're casting, but it was really all about an actor’s abilities, and what they looked like came second. I'm really pleased with the cast we have. Q: Is there a lot of your trademark wacky sense of humour in Rentaghost? Yes, it's got my feel to it, and there's loads of magic, which I really love, too. We've got magic consultants Stuart and Jayne Loughland, and magic is an integrated element of the show - there isn't a drum roll when a trick comes on. All the magic in the show is just as natural as stirring a cup of tea - a ghost floating two feet in the air, or walking through a wall, or making a bin empty itself is natural for a show about ghosts, so all the way through the show teacups stir themselves, there's an enchanted head, flying handkerchiefs, people coming out of suitcases, which is all normal for a company of ghosts! Q: All those amazing effects must be quite pricey? Yes, it hasn't been cheap to stage, but you have to do it because the show demands it. We want the families to come in and engage in the story and be carried along by it. There are bits where they can go berserk, and there’s a great story and good characters.
 | | Michael Staniforth was Timothy Claypole |
We've also got a point to prove - there is some children’s theatre that plays to them as if they're stupid, but we want to produce the Harry Potter equivalent of a live show, with great characters and plots that are enchanting and absorbing that lets kids experience something magical. Kids are pretty sophisticated these days. Q: Is this the first project that you’ve worked on that’s specifically for a family market? Yes, but to be honest, when I do a comedy tour myself, it's tailored for a family audience anyway - I don't do anything on stage that I wouldn't do in front of my kids. Families will enjoy the funny, silly elements and the nostalgia of the show, and there’s lots of comedy that’s really on-the-nose for the kids. Q: Is there a chance for audience participation in Rentaghost? There's a ghost tramp in the theatre before the show starts doing some close-up magic, who’s part of the show, and lots of songs. The music is by Robin Scott. He's classically trained, and we gave him three characters and asked him to write some music to go with them Q: Was writing a musical one of your ambitions? Definitely, and I've still got loads left! I'd love to do an album of duets with Robbie Williams!
Take a trip down memory lane and check out our special gallery of original photos from Rentaghost.
Rentaghost revisited! > Finally, please remember - "don't go into the cellar..!!" | 
