Bloody Mary and the Nine Day Queen | Union Theatre

Everyone is aware of Bloody Mary and her reign, but not as many may know ‘The Nine Day Queen’ Lady Jane Grey. 

Like the name suggests, the show follows Mary I and Lady Jane Grey. Set in Tudor London between 1553 and 1554, After Edward VI's death, Jane is proclaimed Queen, although never officially crowned. Married to Guildford Dudley, Jane plans to keep the Protestant religion alive but after only nine days is overthrown by Mary I, being imprisoned alongside her husband. 

Ella Burrell as set and prop design has kept things both simple yet effective. The whole set consists of an execution block, a throne and a tapestry with the Tudor rose on it. It’s a production that doesn’t need large fancy set pieces. Continuing on the simple yet effective route, Elisabeth Hindse has created versatile costumes. Each of the male characters are able to use the base of their costumes to switch between characters with the females staying in their renaissance style dresses. 

The production is primarily fully sung through, with some really great songs. Some standouts are The Puppet King, which is performed by the whole cast, an upbeat almost jazzy number about king Edward VI, with a puppet being made of the king which got many laughs from the audience. The Edward VI puppet was made by Picture To Puppet, which led to some great scenes with actor Constantine Andronikou puppeteering the character.  

On the contrary, Faithful is a heartfelt moment between the imprisoned Jane and Guildford as Guildford sneaks into Jane’s prison cell to see her.  It’s the first real moment in the show which shows Jane’s love for her husband, and is quite a tear jerker moment. 

Mary I is played by Cezarah Bonner and she’s able to take Mary’s rage from zero to a hundred in a matter of minutes, with songs like Old Time Religion and Bloody demonstrating Bonner’s powerful voice. Anna Unwin is Jane Grey, a clever young woman who at her core kept her faith till the very end. Unwin’s performance feels genuine and raw, embodying the character perfectly. Turn This Around is the closing song of act one and shows Unwin’s ability to portray Jane’s fear for her life but also her determination with her faith to God, with the added bonus of Unwin’s powerhouse vocals.  

Johnnie Benson has one of the most wonderful voices as Guildford Dudley. He’s devoted and constantly there for Jane. The song Only Seventeen shows off the beginnings of their very short love story. Benson captures every emotion Guildford displays throughout the show perfectly. Northumberland is played by Constantine Andronikou. He takes on the comedic role in the show but has an important underlying presence being the character that sets everything into motion and sealing Jane’s fate. Gareth Hides plays both Henry Grey and John Feckenham. Hides keeps the characters distinctly separate, yet both characters share the same needs to protect Jane. It’s heartfelt and heartbreaking at the same time. 

Sometimes the show can feel slightly slow, but as everything is sung through, it does pick up the pace a bit. It’s a show that feels like it could be 90 minutes when first entering, but it quickly proves that two acts is necessary to convey the story properly.  

Bloody Mary and the Nine Day Queen shows Lady Jane Grey's turmoil and hopefully this musical will get another run soon. 

Bloody Mary and the Nine Day Queen plays at the Union Theatre until 29th October 2025.

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★★★★☆ (4*)

Gifted tickets in return for an honest review | Photography by Colin Perkins