The Soap

Record-breaking Bristolian institution – this unscripted soap is a sparkling comedy played by some of the city’s best performers! Meet the characters and catch up with the story so far

Meet the Characters

Set in the fictional world of Newtown

Closer Each Day: The Improvised Soap Opera is set in the fictional world of Newtown, which is somewhere on the coast.

Over the last 14 and a half years, we have discovered that Newtown has a hill called Lyle Hill, an underground cave system, a canal network, a tramline, a dry ski slope, a stadium, all the major supermarkets, some shops that don’t exist any more such as Woolworths and Wilkinsons, a Zen Garden and much much more.

It is also home to many weird and wonderful characters, including:

Big Dick Johnson

Big Dick Johnson (John Lomas). Built like a brick outdoor-toilet, he is a cockney villain with an oddly poetic outlook. A twin brother to Simpkins, he’s always up for a challenge or down for a scam.

Constance Sugar

Constance Sugar (Lindsey Garwood). Powerful and determined with a libido to match her ambition, she is a cunning businesswoman, the local MP and is happy to lie or even kill to get what she wants.

Mr Reginald Simpkins III

Mr Reginald Simpkins III (Sean Duffy). Father to Constance’s children, his relationship with her is turbulent yet erotically-charged. Simpkins is a wealthy hotelier with a Machiavellian streak, and an occasional LARPer.

Alex LeDecky

Alex LeDecky (Emile Clarke). Product of an international school upbringing, this café and pub owner has a head for business and a soul for fashion. He can’t understand why everyone seems to fall in love with him.

Tracey Fish

Tracey Fish (Holly Meechan). This former zookeeper turned beauty therapist is great with nails and doing reiki. Tracey has had a baby with Roy and is backing his political aspirations.

Roy Keen

Roy Keen (Mike Akers). Less successful than his namesake, the manager of Newtown FC is delighted to find he is no longer on the love sub bench. Now he needs to oust Constance as MP…

Dr Aaron Tempest

Dr Aaron Tempest (Neil Haigh). Newtown’s GP is an amateur artist with a bit of a gambling habit. He has got together again with ex-wife Vicki and they are now engaged. Again.

Vicky Entwistle

Vicky Entwistle (Leah Fletcher). A Mancunian estate agent now settled in Newtown and making deals buying and selling people’s dream homes – or turning them into tiny bedsits for loadsa money.

Janelle Pollock

Janelle Pollock (Tara Judah). Janelle is a small town girl with a big city heart. A talented artist, she is also known to be a bit of a stalker of people she likes.

Krissie Johnson

Krissie Johnson (Rebecca MacMillan). Krissie is a fitness influencer and ex-wife to Big Dick Johnson – but is it all really over between them?

Fred Gonzalez

Fred Gonzalez (Andrew Kingston), a radio DJ with an encyclopediac knowledge of 80s pop and artisan ales.

Creative Tech Team

Rob Kershaw, Alex Davey, Jack Drewry, guests (Show Editors). The first voice you’ll hear, The Show Editor is your guide to Newtown. They swing a theatrical camera into the world of our characters and shine a light into their daily lives, loves and struggles.

Jack Drewry (Musical Director). Jack is a theatre-maker, musician and sound designer. He is ever ready to improvise a tune, score a scene, throw in a sound effect or create a sound-scape. Oh…and to compose our amazing theme tune!

The music and sounds may sometimes be provided by our Associate Musician, Simon Hembra.

Guest Stars

Besides our regular cast, we often have fantastic guests from all over the UK and beyond.

Catch up with the story so far

Find out what happened in the last episode, what has gone on so far this season, or access our historic synopses going back to the start! Get yourself a cuppa and a biscuit and read all about it…

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