Tom Stoppard's play The Real Thing is about love, betrayal, jealousy and deceit. It is also about language, self-deception, appearances and truth and is very, very funny.

It cleverly combines scenes from the life of a playwright with scenes from his plays and it blurs the boundaries between what is real and what is not.

It tells the story of witty playwright Henry who believes in true love, the real thing.

He leaves his wife Charlotte for his lover Annie believing this time he has found 'the real thing'.

Their relationship and his relationship with his ex-wife and daughter are wonderful to watch because unlike in real life, where infidelity and divorce are messy and unhappy, here the characters are witty, amusing and always know exactly the right thing to say.

Tom Conti plays smart intellectual Henry to perfection, well supported by the rest of the cast.

Particular credit must go to understudy Jody Elen Machin, who played Annie.

As a fan of Desert Island Discs I was particularly taken with Henry's angst over his selection for the show. How can a famous intellectual admit to being moved by pop songs that include lyrics like "de do run run"?

Written by one of Britain's leading writers, starring one of Britain's leading actors and directed by the talented Tim Piggot-Smith, The Real Thing couldn't fail.

It continues until tomorrow (Saturday).

SUE VICKERS