Produced and presented by The Cockpit
Wednesday 2 to Saturday 5 September 2026 - 7:30pm
Peter Marinker, known for his extensive work on BBC Radio, his many audiobook recordings, and his long association with Samuel Beckett’s publisher John Calder, performs Krapp’s Last Tape.
At 84 and recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, Marinker brings decades of experience performing Beckett’s work as he returns to one of the playwright’s most demanding solo roles - with the function of memory in relation to selfhood at the heart of the production.
In Krapp’s Last Tape, Beckett’s one-act monologue written in 1958, the audience meets a man marking his birthday alone, while listening to and reflecting on recordings he has made each year on that day. We hear a recording Krapp made at the age of 39 and within it, his reflections on tapes made in earlier years, as he makes what we are told is his last tape.
This new production will use reel-to reel recordings made by Peter the last time he played Krapp in 1983. Live in-ear prompts, where needed, will run alongside the play, highlighting the relationship between memory and remembering, cognition and re-cognition.
Following his recent Alzheimer’s diagnosis, the decision to return to Krapp’s Last Tape at this stage in his life has been a deeply personal one, allowing Peter to bring his lived experience to Beckett’s exploration of memory and ageing, intellect, and intuition.
Peter was be supported at all times by the production team at the Cockpit and by his family.
Proceeds from the run were donated to The Alzheimer’s Society.
Thanks to Curtis Brown.
All press enquiries were managed by Elin at The Gingerbread Agency
Elin
gingerbreadagency.com
Now the show has closed, please direct any future enquries to Davethecockpit.org.uk and katthecockpit.org.uk
PRESS
★★★★★
"In a play focused so intimately on memory and longing, the way Marinker’s real life imitates the art he performs, and the way he goes beyond just acting to fully embody the part of Krapp, combine to create truly unique and unforgettable theatre."
West End Best Friend
★★★★★
"Though short, minimalist and relatively unconventional, this performance is undeniably beautiful. Accompanied by Duncan Henderson’s superbly sober stage design, we clearly see Marinker’s actor’s touch shining strongly despite the obstacles."
The Reviews Hub
★★★★★
"Krapp’s Last Tape was hailed as a brave piece of writing from a brave playwright when it was first performed; this week at The Cockpit, it’s being performed by an even braver man."
Everything Theatre
★★★★
"For the director and producer Dave Wybrow, who runs the unassuming but vital Cockpit theatre in northwest London, it is a quietly fascinating piece of theatrical innovation that demonstrates new ways of bolstering a veteran performer’s impaired yet very much extant skill set. The result of their close, caringly done collaboration is a moving, sometimes ruefully funny triumph."
The TImes
★★★★
"Peter Marinker deserved the standing ovation the full house at the Cockpit gave him for this excellent performance. A profound theatrical experience – bravo."
Plays To See
★★★★
"While the traditional ‘illusion’ of theatre is broken and part of its construction revealed, what we gain in this interpretation, directed by David Wybrow, is the revelation of theatre as a collaborative discipline that can enable, support and give access to the arts. Also, we are left with the sense of generosity and love; theatre as family, one that closes in as the lights fade, to hold hands and bid farewell. This is spine-tingling stuff; as meta as it gets."
London Pub Theatres
★★★★
"It’s about now that the word ‘brave’ arrives in reviews like this one and I’ll use it. Of course, there’s some bravery in Peter Marinker’s decision to take on the role (though it caused him not a moment’s hesitation when it was offered) but the genuine bravery comes - perhaps - from Dave Wybrow, the director of the production who dedicated the time and patience required to solve the multiple problems such casting presented. And to reap the rewards of a unique (and uniquely poignant) staging."
Broadway World
"A quiet, intimate and haunting piece of theatre, beautifully held by Marinker’s performance and the careful collaboration of the whole creative team. A production that doesn’t shout for your attention it simply stays with you."
Number 9 Reviews
"Memory takes centre stage in Krapp’s Last Tape — and so does the fragility of remembering. Watching an actor with Alzheimer’s perform a play about memory is unlike any theatrical experience I’ve had."
On In London
"Yes, remarkable really is the word I would use to describe this production."
Salterton Arts Review
★★★★
"Wybrow’s direction turns Beckett’s meditation on memory into something that happens physically in the room. Marinker’s present body, his younger recorded voice, Fossati’s whispered instructions and the mechanical passage of the tape occupy the same theatrical moment. Krapp’s Last Tape becomes, quite literally, a conversation with time."
North West End
"Marinker’s delivery is quiet, beautifully moderated, if a little slower, and the audience were rapt, so focused you could have heard a pin drop."
Fringe Review
★★★★
"I wanted to reach out and touch Marinker who was only inches away from me as he showed his character facing up to mortality but insisting he does not want any of the years back."
Plays International
★★★★
"It’s a triumphant swan song for Marinker and for an innovative yet understated approach to theatre."
The Arts Dispatch
★★★★
"Krapp’s Last Tape isn’t a production that needs to shout to make an impact. Its strength comes from its restraint, its naturalistic direction and the beautiful attention to detail within the design. The prompting could have been a distraction, but instead became one of the elements that gave the production some of its greatest emotional power."
The Theatre Reviewer
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