“There’s a lovely fittingness to bringing a bike show to a city that was once home to the Raleigh Bicycle Factory, cycling is practically in Nottingham’s bones!” – Baffo creator Oliver Harrison
Nottingham Playhouse, Wellington Circus, NG1 5AF
Saturday 19th September | 2pm
https://nottinghamplayhouse.co.uk/events/on-your-bike-baffo/
This joyful family show combines clowning, slapstick, live music and audience play in an interactive adventure celebrating laughter, imagination and the joy of trying again. It’s coming to Nottingham on Saturday 19th September.
OH! Productions are excited to be bringing their brand-new show to Nottingham this autumn with On Your Bike Baffo!, a joyful new family show for ages 3–8. Packed with comic mishaps, playful surprises and plenty of audience involvement, the show follows one clown who tries to reach the finish line, but can’t help getting joyfully distracted by everything he discovers along the way.
Their previous show Signor Baffo toured the UK and internationally, won the Best Kids and Family Award, Adelaide Fringe 2025 and was shortlisted for the Family Friendly Award at Brighton Fringe earlier this year. This new endeavour looks set to be even bigger, bolder and brighter.
Dressed head-to-toe in cycling gear and full of boundless optimism, the hapless, innocent Baffo arrives determined to get on his bike and complete one very important challenge. The only problem? He doesn’t seem entirely sure what he’s doing or where his bike is….
As mysterious objects emerge from a box marked with nothing more than a picture of a bicycle, every discovery leads to fresh comic chaos. With the help of live music, plenty of audience participation and an ever-growing collection of increasingly ridiculous props,
Baffo painstakingly transforms the box and all the bits into a bicycle of his own invention, before discovering, with the help of the crowd, that the answer has been right in front of him all along.
On bringing the show to Nottingham, creator Oliver Harrison said: “There’s a lovely fittingness to bringing a bike show to a city that was once home to the Raleigh Bicycle Factory, cycling is practically in Nottingham’s bones. It feels like a city that gets both bikes and bit of joyful silliness!”
At the centre of the production is the dynamic relationship between performer and audience and On Your Bike Baffo! was developed alongside the very audience it was created for. From the earliest stages of devising, creator Oliver Harrison took the character of Baffo into primary schools, where children became collaborators in shaping the show. Their ideas, reactions and instinctive sense of humour helped inform everything from comic set pieces to the storyline, creating a production that leaves space for spontaneity and genuine play at every performance. Every tumble, wrong turn and comic mishap becomes an invitation for audiences to cheer Baffo on, captivated by his earnest determination to keep trying and his unwavering belief that this time, it will work.
Harrison says: “Laughter and joy is a currency that is incredibly valuable. Every audience is different, and Baffo is always listening. The children aren’t simply watching the show; they’re helping to create it.”
Inspired by Harrison’s own love of cycling, and memories of teaching his daughters to ride a bike, On Your Bike Baffo! draws on a childhood experience familiar to so many families. While Baffo’s journey is filled with spectacular mishaps, his unwavering optimism, determination and eagerness to please remind audiences that sometimes getting things wrong can be every bit as joyful as getting them right.
The live music, performed and composed by Tom Penn, effectively becomes another performer in the show. Tom responds to Baffo’s action, using instruments to help drive the comedy, creating a dialogue between the two and reinforcing the feeling that everyone is in this together.
Suitable for children aged 3-8 and their families, On Your Bike Baffo! is a celebration of imagination, perseverance and collective joy.
Watch the trailer for On Your Bike Baffo! Here
Cast and Creatives
Creator – Oliver Harrison
Oliver Harrison founded Oh! Productions in 2010. The company specialises in children’s theatre and has toured internationally. Oliver trained at Italia Conti and developed his comic craft with Philippe Gaulier, Spymonkey, Dr Brown and Mick Barnfather. In the street-theatre world he spent many years working with the Bureau of Silly Ideas, devising The Sweet Smell of Success and performing in sideshows such as Shirt’or’Squirt and the campaign to get Pie-throwing back into the Olympics. Previous OH! Productions include Signor Baffo and Flat Pack.
Musician -Tom Penn
Tom Penn is a Gaulier-trained actor, clown, musician and theatre-maker. A multi-instrumentalist and vocalist, he performs classical, folk and jazz on violin, viola, piano and double bass As a composer, Tom scored the BAFTA-winning BBC comedy short Quiet Life, two of his songs are featured in the multi-award-winning feature film Two Big Feet. he scored Sam Nicoresti’s comedy special Woke Flake as well as Santi and Naz, which ran at the Soho Theatre in 2025 and won a Charlie Harthill award.
Performer – Drew Cripps
Dru Cripps is a two-time British Comedy Guide award winner and a Malcolm Hardee Award Winner with West End runs and Dave, ITV and BBC credit. His solo show ‘Juicy Bits’ sold out at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2025, earning a slew of 5-star reviews and a run at Soho Theatre. He mixes improvisation, clown and musical comedy in ways that he refers to as “showing up and seeing what happens”.
Listings Information
Venue: Nottingham Playhouse, Wellington Circus, NG1 5AF
Date/Time: Saturday 19th September | 2pm
Ticket Link: https://nottinghamplayhouse.co.uk/events/on-your-bike-baffo/
Full Tour Dates
September 2026
12th – Lyric Hammersmith, LONDON
13th – Kingston Parish Hall, LEWES
19th – Nottingham Playhouse, NOTTINGHAM
20th – BEAM, HERTFORD
26th – Guildhall Arts Centre, GRANTHAM
27th – Wardrobe Theatre – BRISTOL
October 2026
3rd – The Spring, HAVANT
4th – Jackson’s Lane, LONDON
10th – Skipton Town Hall, SKIPTON
17th – Front Room Theatre, WESTON-SUPER-MARE
18th – The Glowyr, AMMANFORD
20th – Curve Theatre, LEICESTER
23rd – OSO Arts Centre, BARNES
25th – Darwen Library Theatre, LANCASHIRE
26th – The Victoria Wood Theatre, WINDERMERE
28th – CAST, DONCASTER
30th – Queens Theatre, HORNCHURCH
November 2026
1st – Redbridge Drama Centre, REDBRIDGE
7th – Library Presents, Rural Touring
8th – The Alex, FAVERSHAM
14th – The Albany Theatre, COVENTRY
15th – The Old Market, BRIGHTON