With the musical My Fair Lady having largely overtaken Pygmalion in people’s minds when they think of Eliza Doolittle and Henry Higgins, it was interesting to see where the story began – with George Bernard Shaw’s 1914 play.

Such is the dominance of the musical that the audience who are expecting to see Eliza Doolittle's painful attempts to enunciate: ‘In Hertford, Hereford, and Hampshire hurricanes hardly happen’ may be somewhat surprised.

It’s not in the play.

Neither are Eliza’s efforts at the Ascot races or the ambassador’s reception where she is taken for a princess.

The latter is only mentioned in a scene after the event, where Henry Higgins (Alistair McGowan) and Colonel Pickering (Paul Brightwell) declare themselves bored of their ‘experiment’ in transforming their protege.

Given that Eliza Doolittle is such a strong and memorable character and the play is about the transformation of a flower girl to a lady, it seemed curious to me that the audience sees so little of it. I certainly would have liked to have seen much more of how she changes.

Where Eliza is concerned the play almost seems to mirror Henry Higgins’ reaction to women – not worthy of too much note or credit for what they achieve.

Pygmalion is very much dominated by men – from Higgins’ arrogance and life philosophy to Eliza’s greedy ‘undeserving poor’ father Alfred (Jamie Foreman).

As a result I felt I could sympathise with Eliza’s distress at Higgins and Pickering not giving her the credit for what she had achieved, but not fully know her as a character.

In spite of this, I still found Pygmalion a highly entertaining and witty play with countless laugh-out-loud moments.

The cast is near perfect.

Alistair McGowan proved a revelation for me in the role of Henry Higgins, brilliantly capturing the misogynistic, insensitive and almost wilfully unkind man who could also be reduced to looking like a naughty little boy when told off by his mother.

Jamie Foreman owned the role of Alfred Doolittle – a man who would think nothing of ‘selling’ his daughter to an unknown man, little thinking or caring what may become of her. That said, I confess I found the role overwritten and would have preferred to have seen less of Alfred and more of Eliza.

With the men shown up as boorish and insensitive, it’s the female characters who emerge with all the grace, dignity and credit in the play.

Rachel Barry is a cracking Eliza, brilliantly portraying her cockiness, intelligence and touching vulnerability.

Her tears at Higgins’ insensitivity had the audience “Ahh-ing” in sympathy.

Rula Lenska impresses with her elegant and sympathetic Mrs Higgins – making me wonder how such an insightful and kind woman could have raised such a boorish son.

With no endless songs to distract, and a thought- provoking premise, it left me wondering just how much – or how little – attitudes to women have changed over the century since the play was written.