It's beginning to look more and more like the sunny, funny Mamma Mia! was a one-off - even though it also launched a trend for extinct pop groups to resurrect their back catalogues in the format of a new musical.

After the dire We Will Rock You (based on the music of Queen), it seemed madness to try again; but now Madness has.

Part of the secret is having the kind of repertoire full of instantly recognisable popular hits to draw on, and the boys had more than most with 21 Top 20 singles to their name.

But then there's the art of moulding those songs into a new plot and making them blend organically so that they seem natural to the action.

Joe is played by Michael Jibson

Tim Firth's attempt here is undoubtedly ambitious and intelligent, following parallel courses that lead character Joe might take when he gets caught breaking into a building site to show off to his girlfriend at the age of 16.

Does he face the music or do a runner? He does both in this Sliding Doors-type story and a cautionary tale emerges about being pulled into a life of crime in comparison to aiming for a career.

Meanwhile, director Matthew Warchus and his excellent choreographer Peter Darling galvanise the pop standards so they explode with vitality but they can't disguise the show they illuminate is too much of a downer.

Take a Thames Tour of Rotherhithe including the home of London's whaling and timber trades

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