Oscar (Brian James O'Sullivan) has come to the island looking for... Solitude? Inspiration? Does he even know? He's had his piano moved up here from London, so he's taking it all seriously. But what is 'it'? He's a successful composer, but all that success came from working with his brother Freddy. And Freddy is dead now, suddenly. Can he write Freddy's memorial piece by himself?
Except he's not completely alone, because Miriam (Kirsty Findlay), his landlady for the next fortnight, isn't going to let him be. She knows a bit about grieving, having lost her father and being left alone to look after her mother with ever-advancing dementia. Whether Oscar wants her to or not...
A sparky relationship develops that brings forth pathos, romance and some kind of understanding. If it verges towards sentimentality on a couple of occasions, that's well counterbalanced by the humour that runs all the way through. There are a lot of good one liners. And songs too. Regular readers will be aware of my antipathy for the stop/start musical format, but the songs in Oscar are well thought through and the lyrics always help move on the plot, feeling like an integral part of the whole. Good performances, and piano playing, from both cast members, and Findlay has a gorgeous singing voice.
Written by O'Sullivan, the script, and songs, and performances, deliver a lot of laughs, moments of drama, reflections on the nature of dealing with grief, and a bit of a twist in the tail. What more could you ask for from a 50 minute drama? Well worth seeing.
PS Vegan haggis sausage roll was today's comestible of choice - pastry was a bit stale!
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