Remembering the Seventies when musical about Jackie magazine comes to Wycombe Swan

Ladies of a certain age will be able to take a trip down memory lane when Jackie The Musical comes to The Wycombe Swan Theatre next month.
Jackie The Musical. Pamela Raith Photography.Jackie The Musical. Pamela Raith Photography.
Jackie The Musical. Pamela Raith Photography.

And I, for one, can’t wait to see it. This is a play about a fifty-something divorcee who revisits her stash of well-thumbed Jackie magazines for the same reason she first read them back in the Seventies - advice on how to deal with the opposite sex.

This was in the era before iPads, laptops or mobiles, when the family television was most likely rented and there was a choice of just three channels.

Anyone who remembers Jackie knows it was one of the biggest selling teenage magazines of the era, and with the original publishers, DC Thomson, and former editor Nina Myskow supporting the show, it’s sure to remain true to its origins.

Jackie accompanied millions of teenage girls through their teenage years in the Seventies and Eighties, with quizzes, fashion tips, the do’s and don’ts of a first date, and above all, advice from the resident problem page agony aunts, Cathy and Claire.

The play centres on Jackie, a lady with the same name as the magazine, who is now divorced and searching for answers as her ex and a handsome new guy are both on the scene.

Janet Dibley, best known for her co-starring role in The Two Of Us with Nicholas Lyndhurst, plays Jackie.

Funny and feisty, the musical has a sound track featuring the era’s most beloved and memorable hits including the sounds of the pop idols of the time, David Cassidy, Donny Osmond and Marc Bolan played live on stage, promising a whirlwind tour of Planet Seventies and a fabulously nostalgic night out.

Former editor Ms Myskow said: “I’m so proud to have been editor of Jackie in its golden years in the Seventies. It always was a girl’s best friend, but I could never have imagined then that its spirit of fun and warmth would live on to become a musical today. It’s such a brilliant idea, and I’m absolutely thrilled that I’m involved all over again.”

With choreography by Arleen Phillips, superb dancing is guaranteed.

Just writing about this show has me feeling nostalgic for the Seventies, when alongside Jackie, there were plenty of other magazines for teenage girls including Mirabelle with the Ask David (Cassidy)Anything column and FAB 208 with its terrific glossy posters.

Alongside the fact I also went on to become editor of a teenage magazine myself, this show is definitely on my ‘to see’ list.

Jackie The Musical is on at The Wycombe Swan at 7.30pm from Tuesday May 10 through to Saturday 14, with additional 2.30pm matinees on the Thursday and Saturday. Tickets from £16 - £32, discounts available. Box office 01494 512000 or book online at www.wycombeswan.co.uk