Phill Jupitus - 'Made Up'

'Carnage?' ponders Jupitus in response to an audience suggestion. 'You've just been watching it for the past hour.' A bit of an exaggeration; it’s more a gentle shambles, but in a loveable way. Phill holds court over a motley bunch of improvisers comprising Steve Steen, Andy Smart and Ian Coppinger for an hour or so of made-up nonsense. With more than just a nod to TV’s improv darling Whose Line is it Anyway? (each round is a direct rip from the programme), the games involve the four individuals, with help from the audience, putting themselves in unworkable situations and somehow managing to improvise their way out of them in original, bizarre and genuinely funny ways. Stealing the scenes somewhat is Steen, who doesn’t really put a foot wrong, his surreal brand of humour lending a twist to proceedings if things threaten to go a bit stale. However, the others are visibly having so much fun, corpsing and unashamedly throwing themselves into each situation that it’s hard not to get swept up in the show’s infectious nature. It’s not carnage in the way Phill may hope, but it’s certainly a riot.