Reviews & features: Comedy
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Magnus Betnér Live
11 Aug 2012
One of Sweden's finest comic exports prefers to look on the bleak side of life
In one shaven-headed, tattooed man appears to be encapsulated the downbeat, morose nature of the Scandic peoples. Letting us know that everything he says on stage is absolutely true, who couldn’t feel worried about his suicidal thoughts? But it’s ok, he…
Kristine Levine: Fat Whore
11 Aug 2012
Tales of filth don’t quite transfer to stand-up
Kristine Levine has spoken previously of writing a book about her life and given the many tales she has at her disposal, it’s unlikely that writers block would be a problem. Whether she has chosen the correct route in stand-up to reveal the details of a…
Daniel Simonsen: Champions
11 Aug 2012
Warm comedic chat about dentistry and weather
He may claim to have learned English from Ali G, but Daniel Simonsen’s grasp on his new language and its comedic possibilities are solid. The young Norwegian kicks off this warm, serviceable show behind the curtain, building up a low-fi sense of…
Holly Burn: The H Club
11 Aug 2012
Eccentric sketches imbued with a liberating lack of reason
To say that Holly Burn is a bit bonkers, is like saying Edinburgh gets a bit busy during August. A familiar face on the Fringe scene, Burn’s barmy Geordie shtick seems to bemuse, confuse -- and when she hits the right note -- amuse her audience in equal…
Rhys Darby: This Way to the Spaceship
11 Aug 2012
Conchords star makes stratospheric rise
It’s likely that Rhys Darby has been able to fill this very large venue thanks to his success as hapless band manager Murray Hewitt on Flight of the Conchords. But he proves in This Way to Spaceship that he’s much more than Murray, though he throws out…
Beard
11 Aug 2012
Promising debut from ‘young upstarts’ Rosa Robson and Matilda Wnek
Cambridge just keeps on churning the comedy talent out. Rosa Robson is a Pembroke Player (former participants include messrs Idle, Oddie and Cook) while Matilda Wnek is a Footlights ‘general member’. Together they are Beard, a fuzzy, comforting…
Susan Calman: This Lady's Not for Turning Either
11 Aug 2012
`Self-deprecation and a rock-star start from the First Lady of Scottish Comedy
Susan Calman is at her most passionate and political this year. Equal marriage is on the agenda, but she kites wild and surprising tangents with a lightly manic and highly engaging touch. In the spirit of the list that forms the core of this gleeful…
Stewart Lee: Carpet Remnant World
11 Aug 2012
Fringe veteran can still hurt stomachs
Stewart Lee’s 2012 Fringe kicked off in typically provocative vein, when his Guardian article (headlined ‘The Slow Death of the Edinburgh Fringe’) delivered an industry-savvy knee to the groin of corporate comedy promoters. While PRs dealt with the…
Oyster Eyes Presents: Some Rice
11 Aug 2012
Confidently juvenile with some testing sketches
Oddball sketch quartet Oyster Eyes launch onto the stage with a ridiculous self-penned showtune, full of energy and interspersed with surreal stings, setting out their stall for this mixed but ultimately successful show. From the introduction we…
Jack Jerome's Journey of Life
11 Aug 2012
Energetic but ill-fated character
Some comedy creations are just too successful for anyone to even attempt a retread. There will never be another Pub Landlord thanks to Al Murray’s world domination of that character type. In Edinburgh Fringe terms, anyone who comes along with a…
Celia Pacquola: Delayed
11 Aug 2012
A quirksome loveable geekfest
In this, her third solo show at the Fringe, Aussie Celia Pacquola examines whether she has achieved anything in her move to the UK. It’s particularly pertinent as she left behind a long-term boyfriend, and whether they will stay together maintains some…
Ian Shaw: A Bit of a Mouthful
11 Aug 2012
Comic jazz set about modern woes that could benefit from a little more substance
Celebrated jazz pianist, singer, producer and comedian (take your pick) Ian Shaw doesn’t have to prove anything. His work with renowned vocalists, artists and studios has earned him the right to step back a little. But in this breezy show, Shaw blandly…
The Trap: Bad Musical
11 Aug 2012
Comedy group performance almost convincingly good at being awful
It’s tricky doing something so bad that you make it good. But The Trap fellas are seasoned sketch show artistes and so know what they’re doing in creating a ‘bad musical’. Sound cues are routinely missed, there’s plenty of in-fighting and the lead…
Shappi Khorsandi: Dirty Looks and Hopscotch
11 Aug 2012
Consummate if conventional comedy from the Iranian comic
From the outset, the Iranian comedian has the crowd in the palm of her hand. Shappi Khorsandi is confident and charming and cute, and she seems to know just how far to push the lewd jokes. And the large audience that’s largely made up of an elderly…
Munfred Bernstein's Cabinet of Wonder
11 Aug 2012
Imagination abounds but delivery flops in Jamie Bowen's character show
An elderly amateur taxidermist fathered by an alcoholic monster-hunter and cursed with feminine ankles, Munfred Bernstein is an intriguing proposition but doesn’t quite live up to its promise. Though adept with a ukulele and organ, performer Jamie Bowen…
WitTank
11 Aug 2012
Disappointing show from the recently televised comedy trio
The comedy troupe of three return to the Fringe after a bout at the Beeb with more of their quick and quicker-fire sketch show fare. Occupying the ground between enthusiastic amateurs and reliable professionals, WitTank tick all the boxes with a show…
Sean Hughes: Life Becomes Noises
11 Aug 2012
Comedy show that shifts seamlessly between pathos and gags
It’s been noted in previous years that there are a lot of dad-dying shows about. But it’s one of those big life events, so why wouldn’t you write a show about it? Sean Hughes’ father died of cancer last year, but what this show certainly isn’t is some…
Mark Nelson: Under the Radar
11 Aug 2012
The formerly vicious comic's new attitude results in moments of profound hilarity
Mark Nelson may be going soft. When he first launched onto the scene, winning the inaugural Scottish Comedian of the Year competition in 2006, his more barbed quips could have made Frankie Boyle wince. Now just into his thirties and settled down, Nelson…
Rachel Stubbings is Stubbing Out Problems
11 Aug 2012
Character comedy based on an agony aunt adept at causing pain
If the words of Rachel Stubbings are to be believed then a combination of charm, people skills and general awesomeness is all that is required to remedy even the most deeply rooted personal torment. And she possess all three. In Stubbing Out Problems…
The Funeral of Conor O'Toole
11 Aug 2012
Compassionate comedy skirting with tedium
Fey, morbid and awkward Conor O’Toole is an unlikely comedian. A noted Goth, O’Toole wants to plan his own funeral and he is after an audience. He leads a curious bunch of punters from Bristo Square to Greyfriars Kirkyard, gets them to settle near some…
Jo Caulfield: Thinking Bad Thoughts
11 Aug 2012
An accessible but overly safe let-down
Perhaps it is with a more mature audience in mind – a glance around the room suggests this may not be far off the mark – but there’s something very traditional about Edinburgh resident and Fringe veteran Jo Caulfield’s style of comedy. Returning once…
Mark Thomas: Bravo Figaro!
10 Aug 2012
An operatic voyage around his father
The very least you would expect from a show about a son arranging for an opera to be performed in his dying father’s living room is to be moved. And in Bravo Figaro!, Mark Thomas achieves that on at least two occasions, but in surprising ways and at…
Michelle Wormleighton - Bewildered
10 Aug 2012
Surprisingly neat show by the first time solo performer
If the promising name of the show doesn't tempt you into attending, the little note on the flyer surely will: BURRITOS AVAILABLE it says at the back. The performance is a part of...
Jim Jefferies: Fully Functional
10 Aug 2012
Revelatory and raucous stand-up at its most potent
Watching Jim Jefferies at his best is akin to the sensation of wading neck deep into ice cold water and suddenly realising you’ve lost your footing. The sheer audacity of his material and its depths is breathtaking. Given his current personal…
Mr Snot Bottom's Stinky Silly Show
10 Aug 2012
Fifty minutes of fart, bum, booger
The scatological stage is one that all pre-schoolers go through, and Mr Snot Bottom’s hour of fart-bum-eugh gags is cunningly calculated to get as many hot-button words into 50 minutes as is humanly possible. He is a fit Australian chap with a whiff of…
