KIDNAP by Samia Rida at Park Theatre

Writer, comedian and actor Samia Rida (BBC’s River City, Sky’s Breeders and BBC/Netflix’s Rebel Cheer Squad) releases new dates for her first autobiographical one-woman show Kidnap, a dark comedy inspired by her childhood abduction by her father, comes to Park Theatre (Friday 30 July and Saturday 1 August, 7pm).

Based on her own true story, the show recalls how Samia's father took her and two siblings from West London to Saudi Arabia after their mother was granted custody of the children and sought a divorce.

At just eight years old, she faced the unknown during the nine-month ordeal and despite being the youngest she became the main carer for her disabled brother.

The kidnapping was reported in the local press after a High Court judge ordered the father's arrest and a nationwide manhunt by air and sea. He eventually returned the children to the UK after their mother said she would not proceed with the divorce, and he did not face criminal charges.

The show is a dark, challenging and defiantly funny exploration of multiculturalism, domestic abuse, being a child carer for her brother, and how being kidnapped can involve a swimming pool and a former family holiday destination.

Samia, who lives in London and describes herself as ‘half Welsh, half Saudi and a full multicultural failure’, says: “While recalling this experience I was stunned at how I struggled to access what I felt, but I knew that it had fundamentally changed me.

“It has affected me throughout my life, compounded by caring for my disabled sibling, and I want the show to start conversations around masculinity and how witnessing abuse, particularly as a child carer, can be very isolating.

“While my Mum has sadly now passed away, my father is aware I’m telling this story and making use of dark humour within this show - I want to create an opportunity to reach both men and woman to come together and learn from these harmful power dynamics in families.”

Kidnap was previously performed at Riverside Studios as part of its Bitesize Festival, and the script has been optioned for a television adaptation by Fulwell 73. Samia's screen credits include Breeders, Rebel Cheer Squad and Tell Me About Yourself, for which she received a Best International Actor award.

As a writer, Samia has been part of the BBC Writersroom and was selected for the WFTV Mentoring Scheme. The show is supported by the charity Sibs, BBC Comedy Collective and Funny Women, and is directed by Gareth Edwards (Mitchell and Webb Are Not Helping, Spaced, Upstart Crow).