Despite Hope’s name, her story is tragic until the last as she leaves a streak of selfish destruction in her wake. The central image of a quest by assorted misfits who, despite some bouts of bad temper or depression, are shown to be good people (more or less) suggests the play’s politics of small-scale resistance. On their way to find the Strawberry Fields commune of Hope’s youth, they are joined by redundant forest ranger Ali, but things soon get very complicated. This show contains strobe, haze, smoking on stage, flashing lights, very loud and sudden noise, including gun shots, strong language and staged violence that some may find distressing. Isla’s sister was murdered by an abusive partner, and she is harbouring the couple’s child – on the run from relentlessly evil father, Wayne.

Director Lucy Morrison and designer Naomi Dawson give these opening scenes an effectively crazed, funhouse air, with a primary-coloured set and a gameshow wheel. Sign up to unlock our digital magazines and also receive the latest news, events, offers and partner promotions. Yet despite the infiltration of the market into everything and everywhere, Fowler argues that hope and happiness is still possible (just look at the title, which gets an ironic twist in the play’s ending). Fowler’s writing has an instantly appealing brightness and energy, and his renaming of places reveals the ubiquity of big corporations in a nation ruled by a CEO rather than prime minister: Nike International, Samsung Central and Mitsubishi Parkway. Along the way, Wizard of Oz style, they meet a scarecrow – sorry – forestry worker (Ali) who is depressed at losing their job when it’s revealed Facebook Forest will be cut down and replaced by flats.If you would benefit from knowing more about specific content and themes in Hope has a Happy Meal, please read our list below. Amaka Okafor is understandably incensed as Hope’s long time abandoned sister, who has turned to drink to drown her sorrows.

When protagonist Hope lands at Nike International Airport after 24 years abroad, she knows everything has changed. Ali and Isla fall for each other and along the way the threesome find themselves unwittingly kidnapping Wayne – it turns out none have the stomach for cold blooded murder. There is also something very allusive in his writing: the mention of Strawberry Fields commune brings to mind the Beatles song “Eleanor Rigby” when, some time later, it becomes evident that we are dealing with a situation that could be described as “all the lonely people, where do they all come from? Laura Checkley’s charismatic protagonist makes a delightful pairing with Mary Malone’s Isla as the two negotiate a feverish escape involving train toilets and unlikely underground resistance volunteers, picking up a depressed but terribly sweet forest ranger (Nima Taleghani) along the way.

This is a shame because it’s an intriguing conceit, and could have been developed further, but there are too many ideas packed into this play that don’t get fully realised, and Hope’s journey to find her son understandably takes precedence because it is a human – and relatable – story. He gives the actors lots to work with, and Royal Court Associate Director Lucy Morrison adds physical flair and playfulness to the piece. Perhaps the most notable example of that is in Lucy Morrison’s direction which is creative, intuitive, and dynamic.

A surreal and frenetic quest through a hyper-capitalist country, Tom Fowler's play Hope has a Happy Meal premiered at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in June 2023, directed by Lucy Morrison, in a co-production with SISTER.Nima Taleghani is entirely loveable as Ali, the forest ranger who Hope and Isla discover trying to commit suicide because there is no forest to look after.