First night review: The Hiddleston mojo is going strong but he never gets to ...

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BETRAYAL

Pinter Theatre, London 

Rating:

Last time I saw Tom Hiddleston I was gripping the arm of my sofa at the eye-popping sight of his naked derriere. That was in The Night Manager on TV three years ago. Since then, nothing.

Had his star waned? His hour passed? His shtick withered? Judging by this West End comeback in Harold Pinter’s 1978 drama about a doomed love triangle told backwards, I’d say not. His mojo is still intact.

In so far as Pinter’s play allows it, Hiddleston is very good. The trouble is the play doesn’t allow much. Pinter’s dry, guarded characters are as famous for their silences as they are for their cagy dialogue. What’s more, Hiddleston plays a high status stooge whose wife is having an affair with his best friend. King Lear it’s not.