Ready Or Not was a response to the distortions and constant media feeding created by the so called war on terror. ‘In the 16 years since 9/11, so much has changed; paranoia has grown, the ‘us’ and ‘them’ rhetoric gathers pace, and 24/7 news coverage in the post-truth era now provides a soundtrack to our lives. The war on terror has left countries and peoples ravished with untold numbers of non-combatants killed – untold because they’re uncounted. Ready or Not explores these themes in a domestic setting where three characters deal with their own personal battles within this wider global context.’

– Naylah Ahmed

★★★★“Ready Or Not is a thought-provoking political thriller that questions our concepts of war and terror. ”
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★★★ “Ahmed has packed this play with ideas not just about the clash of civilizations but about motherhood, guilt, teaching and more.”
–Everything Theatre

★★★ “Ready or Not  is an ambitious black comedy which thrives in its darker moments… the violence is gripping for its plausibility … Pat, is played as steely nerves coming undone by a superb Joan Blackham…. a story of grief and the latent fear of otherness… real and cutting observations of growing up Muslim in a country unhappy to see you”  Joe-Vesey-Byrne, The Independent

“Ahmed’s neat inversion of terrorist tropes is inspired” FringeReview, RECOMMENDED SHOW

Joan Blackham received a nomination for Best Female In A Play from the Offies (the Off West End Theatre Awards)