Cadel : Lungs On Legs by Connor Delves & Steve McMahon at Riverside Studios 13 October - 15 November 2026

'Delves clearly knows his subject and smartly steers us towards the denouement' ★★★ ½ 

Guilty as charged. I am one of those 50-something men that, with the knees having packed up thus meaning that running and squash are pretty much out of the question, has embraced the lycra and spends far too much money on Rapha products. I've done a couple of 100 mile rides which nearly resulted in my premature end and so it goes without saying that my admiration for those who ride the tours professionally and relentlessly knows no bounds. Of course I know of Wiggins, Thomas and Froome, of Contador, Indurain and LeMond, and he who must not be named (rhyming with Chance Palmstrong). I have to confess that I did not know the name Cadel Evans, an Australian who won the Tour De France in 2011 and whose story is smartly and vividly brought to life by Connor Delves as, for its 100th performance, it reaches the Riverside Studios for its press night.

Let me firstly say that Delves is clearly in good nick and he needs to be as he spends much of the tight and taut 70 minutes on various 'I'd quite like that one' stationary bikes as he takes us from Evans' humble upbringing (simple life, moving around Australia, supportive parents) to mountain biking and then to making serious attempts at winning the Tour De France which culminates in his emotional win in 2011. As Cadel, Delves is a real live-wire, archetypally Australian, bursting with energy but with an increased focus as he starts to believe that he can and will win the world's greatest cycling race. His literal and figurative journey from a slightly introverted, injury-hit figure to confident and outgoing winner is well realised and whilst there are moments which drift dangerously towards Aussie caricature, Delves clearly knows his subject and smartly steers us towards the denouement at the Champs-Elysées.

Delves' performance is everything but the show is lit up by a smart use of video archive content which is used on a big screen backdrop throughout the story. This is most effective with loving race shots through France and into Paris and, most wistfully for folk of a certain age, commentary from the great Phil Liggett, who memorably predicted Cadel's Tour de France win many years before it actually happened. The video material combined with Delves' busy inter-changing of bikes and lycra keeps things moving along at a jaunty pace, albeit I might have trimmed 5 or 10 minutes from the running time.

I guess you can say that there Delves and his co-writer Steve McMahon get a bit stuck between the back story and the ultimate win so there is a lack of jeopardy. We also don't learn anything about Cadel's private life but maybe that wouldn't have added anything - who knows. All in all this is a slick, well performed show which deserves a successful run in London - and a tour beyond. 

Cadel : Lungs On Legs by Connor Delves & Steve McMahon

Riverside Studios

https://riversidestudios.co.uk

Directed by Mark Barford

Starring Connor Delves 

Photography:  Kyle Dax Smith