Hercules the Bear is the story of how a family in Sheriffmuir adopted a bear cub. He grew to ten-foot tall, and this grizzly bear became famous across the whole of Scotland. In the 1980s, whilst filming an advert on Benbecula, Hercules went missing. It sparked a 24-day bear hunt, which began with the army involved and ended with Maggie and Andy Robin alone searching until he was found, alive and well. Maggie and Andy had Hercules sitting at the dinner table, eating cooked meals and swimming in the sea.
Hercules’ story has been told many times but seldom has it been done in such a way that the very innocence of the time has been fully captured. Here Tenterhooks have created a beautiful homage to the bear, his parents and our love national affair.
The start of the show is Hercules coming out with Andy and Maggie, escaping their clutches and creating havoc amongst the audience. It sets the tone of mischief and the inquisitive nature of this gentle giant.
The younger and older Hercules is performed using two puppets with the puppeteer playing Hercules in the middle part of his life. Seamlessly we move backwards to the arrival of Hercules as a cub as Andy and Maggie are seen besotted by him. All three bears have the naughtiness without the menace, though this is no cutesy, sitting on your pillow teddy bear.
There’s little dialogue. In fact, it depends a lot on grunts and motions, perhaps mimicking the fact that A. It is designed to be relaxed throughout and B. that the principal protagonist doesn’t have a lot of vocabulary to use. Voiceovers explain where we are in the story as Hercules grows up and accompanies Andy on tours of the country, beating him in wrestling matches throughout the length and breadth of Scotland.
The set is well imagined, especially when the wrestling ring unfurls from the back of the stage and then is folded away again, after the depiction of one of their sparkling wrestlings shows, to become the stark backdrop of the crags and crannies of the island when Hercules went missing. It transports us from the child’s cartoon-like, set as the backdrop to the story to the star reality that he may be gone for good. The puppetry is exceptionally well imagined, and performers, Susie Ferguson, Diane Thornton and Ben Winger give us this innocent and unusual family in an empathetic manner, which translates beautifully across the footlights – the essence of their relationships are well imagined in their general chat and physical comedy.
Innocence pervades the whole show, from the set to the circumstances of the family, to the means of communication to the appeal to entire families. It allows access from people of any age. There were several children in the audience on that blustery evening and every single one of them giggled with delight, boy and girl alike.
You can well imagine in 2025 what would happen if any family decided they were taking a grizzly bear into a family home, but here this was more than just a different time, it was a period of innocence which is the backdrop to the story of Hercules and his adopted family.
This is an intensely Scottish tale told with great skill and understanding, where the innocence of both Maggie and Andy, who adopted Hercules and raised him, is treated with respect and love. Maggie’s involvement in this performance, which includes some nicknacks, and photographs to be viewed after the show, continues that connection. There is no underlying meaning or social standpoint to be investigated, but what Andy, Maggie sought to do was involve Hercules in their wish career to entertain. And I was thoroughly entertained.
On a side note, it was brilliant to see Catherine King completely integrated as the BSL performer – little surprise given the work that was done last year at Ayr Gaiety for d/Deaf integration. Good to see it was more than tokenism.
Hercules the Bear is on tour until 1st of November
Reviewed 3rd October 2025 at Cumbernauld Theatre
Photo credit: Eoin Carey
