The Unfriend opens this week at Ilkley Playhouse

Monday, 27 October 2025 09:18

The Unfriend opens on Thursday at Ilkley Playhouse

The Unfriend opens this week in the Wharfeside Theatre at Ilkley Playhouse.

Running from Thursday 30th October until Saturday 7th November, The Unfriend is written by Steven Moffat. The Scottish writer and producer is the creator of many TV hit shows, such as Sherlock, Dracula, The Time Traveler’s Wife, Coupling, Douglas is Cancelled and many of the best and most loved episodes of Doctor Who.

The Unfriend centres on suburban couple Peter and Debbie, whose polite invitation made to a stranger on holiday has dire consequences. When reserved couple Peter and Debbie meet the exuberant Elsa during a holiday cruise, they indulge in the kind of fleeting friendship that usually ends once the trip is over. But Elsa, a seemingly charming and eccentric American, has other ideas. Before they know it, she has invited herself to stay at their home, disrupting their comfortable, predictable lives. As Elsa settles in, her larger-than-life personality clashes hilariously with the couple’s repressed British politeness.

What starts as mild discomfort quickly escalates when Peter and Debbie uncover unsettling details about their guest’s past. But how do you confront someone when you’re too polite to ask them to leave?

“We're dying of manners. We're under siege from personal embarrassment. This is not sane. This is not rational. That woman is a monster!” As their anxiety grows, so does the absurdity of their predicament, with nosy neighbours, awkward social interactions and the creeping realisation that Elsa might not be as harmless as she seems.

The Unfriend is a sharp, darkly funny exploration of British reserve meeting American directness, wrapped in a tightly wound comedy-thriller that keeps the tension simmering until the very end.

Also in November at Ilkley Playhouse: