Burger van inspires new stage show

Greasy Vera's burger van was originally run by married couple Vera and Les before John Smith took over in the 1980s

A new comic theatre production inspired by a legendary late-night South Yorkshire burger van is opening in Sheffield.

The food truck known as Greasy Vera’s was stationed in Neepsend for much of the 1970s through to the early Noughties.

Late-night workers and revellers would gravitate towards the truck, which sold burgers, bacon sandwiches and the infamous "chegg burger".

The Greasy Vera’s stage show, chronicling the van's colourful customers, will open on Monday at the Lantern Theatre.

The name Greasy Vera’s is a tribute to its original owner Vera, who ran the burger van with husband Les in the 1970s before John Smith took over in the 1980s.

Mr Smith ran the van with his daughter Michelle Dickinson for more than 20 years before shutting up shop in 2003.

Ms Dickinson said the original Vera was "mortified" about the new name.

“I remember my first night I went home stinking of grease," she said.

"It was very greasy. We didn’t actually name it ‘Greasy Vera’s’, it was the customers who called it that so we took the name."

John Smith ran Greasy Vera's burger van for more than 20 years before retiring and moving to the east coast in 2003

A grant of £12, 879 was given by the National Lottery Arts Council Fund to help develop the stage production.

Writer James Doolan said he remembered first hearing the words "Greasy Vera's" on a local radio discussion about old food places in Sheffield.

“I remember jotting the words down because I thought it sounded like a good song lyric and then I kept thinking about it so I started looking up old stories about this legendary van on the internet," he said.

Mr Doolan then tracked down Ms Dickinson to see if she might be interested in helping to put together a stage production.

The snack van itself was a blue 1952 Austin.

It was originally situated on waste ground by the cement works on Mowbray Street, Kelham Island.

Before long it moved to Swinton Street between Pitsmoor Road and Chatham Street.

Mr Smith said it was a late-night hub for a wide variety of "colourful characters".

"Taxi drivers, sex workers, lorry drivers, clubbers and lots of police. It was a mixture of everything but there was never any problems," he said.

Mr Doolan said the production would showcase all the "late-night characters" that Mr Smith met over the years.

Sheffield artist Joe Scarborough featured Greasy Vera's in a painting of the city

Mr Smith said the most popular item on the menu at Greasy Vera's was always the infamous "chegg burger" - a cheeseburger with a fried egg.

Ms Dickinson said: "I'd watch people bite into it and see the grease and the lard dripping down with all the egg yolk.

"It went everywhere."

After a week of rehearsals in the Lyceum Theatre, the stage show of Greasy Vera's will debut at the Lantern Theatre in Sheffield on Monday, with a second performance at the Kelham Island Museum on Tuesday.