Love Actually? Or not: Hear both sides of the argument at Studio 188

It’s been 15 years since Love Actually burst into movie theatres in the lead up to Christmas.

It is a typical British all-in, feel-good rom-com that follows the lives of eight different couples who are loosely connected to each other.

For many it has become a Christmas season staple.

Over the last few years, though, there has been a growing group of dedicated Love Actually haters who find the film terrible at best and sexist and sleazy at worst.

Brisbane performer Natalie Bochenski is one of these people.

“I have been friends with Amy Currie for 10 years now. Every Christmas we have the same argument about the movie,” Ms Bochenski explains.

“So we decided to do a show about it. It’s based on our real life arguments. Our show Love/Hate Actually is theatrical comedy, we present for and against in a fun way.”

Ipswich has been on their radar from the start.

“I really wanted to perform at Studio 188. I love repurposed venues, it’s really special,” Ms Bochenski said.

“We wanted to take the show to Ipswich, so the people of Ipswich didn’t have to travel to Brisbane. We are self-funded artists so we hope the people of Ipswich can get behind us.”

The idea of the show was born two years ago when Amy turned up at Natalie’s house with cue cards and tape deck a-la the Walking Dead’s Andrew Lincoln.

“She showed up with a turtle neck on, with giant cue cards and played silent night while trying to convince me to ‘just give (the movie) it a chance, it’s Christmas’, Ms Bochenski said.

“It was very funny but it didn’t change my mind.”

Ms Bochenski admits, that as the lover of all things Love Actually, Amy does have the most support.

“Amy has more wins, but I love it when someone comes up to me after the show and says that I have made some good points, I’m getting the message out there,” she said.

For now Ms Bochenski is just happy to watch something else at Christmas time.

“We had to watch this film so many times to research for the show. It was awful. We only have an hour but with all the problems in the film I could easily go on for two hours,” she said.