Ocean at the End of the Lane is odd, very odd, even the players say the word ‘weird’ several times in the opening moments.

The blurb said, ‘magical and mesmerising’. Um.

But you ask is it enjoyable? Not really. Although I noticed people in the audience laughed aloud several times, I was not among them.

It is dark, very dark and scary and in parts cruel.

However, having said that I wouldn’t have missed it for the world – this very strange world.

Imagine the script is a combined fantasy effort by Tolkien, CS Lewis and Lewis Carroll and you’ll get my drift.

The storyteller Richard MacKinnon Gaiman writes comic books, graphic novels and film scripts.

He is responsible for The Sandman series, Coraline and The Graveyard Book.

This is the story of a bereaved young boy conquering his demons with the help of ‘weird’ neighbours and the hinderance of ‘weird’ other world creatures.

Does It begin with a dark burial scene or was that my imagination, where does reality start in the play which confuses a duck pond with an ocean with dead fish?

This is the National Theatre’s critically acclaimed The Ocean at the End of the Lane which has been adapted for stage by Joel Horwood and directed by Katy Rudd.

The 17-strong ensemble cast on opening night at the Bristol Hippodrome included Charlie Brooks aka Janine Butcher in the BBC soap opera EastEnders as the blonde seductress Ursula, Trevor Fox whose television credits include The Thief, his Wife and the Canoe and Our Friends in the North as the Georgie dad, Millie Hikasa (Lettie Hempstock) Kemi-Bo Jacobs (Ginnie Hempstock), Laurie Ogden (Sis), Keir Ogilvy (Boy), and Emma-Jane Goodwin as Old Mrs Hempstock.