David Baddiel’s award-winning bestselling children’s book The Parent Agency has remained a firm favourite with young readers since it was first published a decade ago.
Now, the story of Barry Bennett and his search for the “perfect” parents is coming to the stage in a new musical which features songs by The Feeling’s Dan Gillespie Sells.
Its world premiere takes place at Storyhouse in Chester this weekend, and we caught up with the man behind it to find out what audiences can expect…
- How did the idea for the original book of The Parent Agency come about?
A lot of publishing people had been talking to me about writing a kids’ novel. David Walliams had done it, and I think that had opened up the interest.
But I was writing adult books, and what I said was I haven’t got an idea for a children’s novel, I’m not interested in writing a children’s novel if I don’t have a good idea.
Then one day my son Ezra, who was eight at the time, said: “Dad, why doesn’t Harry Potter run away from the Dursleys and try and find some better parents?”
And that gave me an idea, which is about a world in which kids can choose their own parents. I felt immediately a kind of tuning fork went off inside me, like ‘that’s a good idea for a kids’ story’.
It never bothered me that that came from my son – that slightly strange idea that if you’re not happy with your parents you can change them!
I just wrote it. It did really well, and that started me writing kids’ novels.
- What can you tell us about the musical, and does the plot differ from the book?
I’ve made The Parent Agency a musical about kids but also about parenting. It’s a musical about the relationship between parents and children.
A comic relationship, but it’s actually got more moving things in it than I think the book has.
And there’s certainly a song at the end which, well I cry every time I hear it, a love song sung by Barry’s real parents called Everyday Love. It’s a love that’s very rarely expressed.
So I think it’s a family musical, not just a kids’ musical.
There are some changes. There are more adult parts in it and, as I say, it’s the same story but with songs and sequences that are quite grown up in what they’re about at the same time.
Nothing that will alienate kids, but things that will touch parents quite deeply.
- What has it been like to work on the show’s songs with Dan Gillespie Sells?
There was quite a lot of conversation at the start, and then Dan’s name came up.
I’d seen Everybody’s Talking About Jamie and thought ‘oh that would be brilliant’. To be honest with you, I think he’s a genius.
I’ve been in his studio and written lyrics, expecting it to take him a few days to come back with something.
And literally, if he likes the lyrics, it triggers something in him, and he’ll come up with a melody immediately. It’s such a beautiful thing when that happens.
- So how do the songs work with the story?
One of the things someone once said to me is that every song should feel dramatically that the characters have no choice but to burst into song – either because they’re passionate or something ridiculous has happened or because it’s a really energetic moment where you can’t contain yourself.
Barry is fed up with his parents, for very good reasons – they’re boring, they’re tired, they don’t buy him enough presents and they’ve got too many rules!
He’s also annoyed they’ve called him Barry. He doesn’t like the name Barry, he thinks it’s much too middle-aged for a modern kid. And he sings a song about all the things his parents got wrong, that’s the opening number.
After a row with his mum and dad he wishes for better parents and the posters in his bedroom – which are James Bond and Kylian Mbappé the French football player – come alive and beckon him through the wall into a world run by kids where you can try out parents, whether they’re your perfect parents or whatever.
He meets different types of parents, and every time new parents appear, they sing to Barry to try and impress on him why he should come and be their son.
- How important was it to you to make The Parent Agency’s main character a boy?
Obviously, Matilda is fantastic – but I think there’s a lot at the moment for girls, and there’s less stuff around for boys.
You’ve got to give them stories that they relate to, and you’ve also got to make them funny.
A lot of parents have said to me “thank you for helping my boy, my son, to read. He wasn’t very interested, but he likes your books because they’re funny.”
- The musical is being premiered at Storyhouse in Chester. How well do you know the venue?
I was there last autumn to do a kids’ event (the WayWord festival) because I have a new kids’ book out called Small Fry which is about a boy who cooks in his dad’s burger van and turns out to be a brilliant chef. I talked about that and The Parent Agency.
I’ve also played Storyhouse as a stand up and really liked it, I thought it was a really good new venue, a really beautiful room and a good size.
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