Crushed is set amidst the student protests of 2010, in which between 30-50,000 protesters marched against the Tory-Lib Dem government proposal to raise tuition fees from three to nine thousand pounds a year. For me, this was rare opportunity to sit in the audience of a play and think “I was there”. From the chants of “Tory scum” to Hannah’s description of the hopeful feeling on the day, as if something was about to change, Crushed recaptures the atmosphere of the student protests wholeheartedly.

Tim Cook’s writing is honest. Regardless of whether you were more of a ditzy party girl like Amy (Hatty Jones), a philosophic Nietzsche-quoter like Sam (Tim Cook), or an impassioned keen-to-change-the-world optimist like Hannah (Amani Zardoe), if you went to university around the time of 2010, you will have stumbled across Cook’s three characters either on your course, in your halls of residence or at a house party. Later, as his characters are sucked off the education conveyor-belt and into careers they’re not necessarily passionate about – Amy in the pharmaceutical industry and Sam in charity fundraising – Cook’s writing continues to ring true as we witness student passion fade into the corporate money-making world.

Whilst Hannah is seemingly happy in her career as a journalist, Cook tackles the reality of a university relationship breaking down as its participants grow apart, through her and Sam’s relationship. However Cook doesn’t dwell on the sadness of a break-up in Crushed; instead he presents it as an accepted part of growing out of a university frame of mind. Here, the break-up scene between Hannah and Sam is a catalyst for one of the funniest moments of the play, as Hannah uses Amy to deliver the double bill of news to Sam.

Aside from the scenes of the student protest, nothing exceptional happens in Crushed, nor should it. Cook’s coherent and seamless story is brought to life through skilled performances from all three actors, making this an enjoyable and poignant piece of theatre. Zardoe is appropriately sharp and quick-witted as Hannah, Cook is authentic in the part of Sam, and Jones, as Amy, relates to her audience, carrying us through the narrative with her.

Unfortunately, the seating arrangement inside the King’s Head Theatre made for a near in-the-round experience, which Paul Macauley’s otherwise acute direction seemed unprepared for. With three blocks of chairs inappropriately staggered and at odd angles to one another, I had to crane my neck from the second row to see Zardoe as she sat on the floor. This also meant that by the end of her first main scene, I still hadn’t seen Zardoe’s face and despite Cook facing my direction, my vision of him was entirely blocked by Zardoe’s back.

Seating aside, Crushed is an accomplished piece of writing, artfully performed by Broken Silence Theatre. Raising ironic questions such as whether students chose to pay three grand a year to party, or three grand not to live in the real world, Cook’s play explores a pinnacle time of protest for a generation, and what it meant to be a student in 2010.

Crushed is playing at the King’s Head Theatre until 1 November. For more information and tickets, see the King’s Head Theatre website.