Are our relationships worth it? With so much opportunity out there, this question seems to haunt the modern relationship more than any other. And it’s this question that’s at the heart of the bitter domestic farce that is Vicky Jones’ The One.

Harry (John Hopkins) and Jo (Tuppence Middleton) are staying up for as long as it takes for Jo’s sister to give birth. By the light of the moon and a Channel 5 ‘shock doc’, wine is consumed. Lots of wine is consumed, and then more wine consumed. It isn’t long before the slosh and glug of wine turns into a greek chorus– exposing truths, torments and the beginnings of a dangerous game of one-upmanship.

Armed with painfully well-observed dialogue and terrific performances from the two leads, Jones demonstrates that even with all our freedoms, we shall never be free of ourselves. Sexual jealousy, desire, and love are primitive impulses designed to turn us back into the animals we truly are.

The One is a breathless, ferocious and wickedly funny portrayal of the modern, monogamous relationship. Where, despite the incompatibility of its two antagonists, and the ulcer-inducing tension it produces, its addictive wit and sharp gaze make its ticket price decidedly ‘worth it’, even if the relationship isn’t.

Henry Heffer 10/7/18

At the Soho Theatre until 25 August 2018.