Tony Morewood In The Comedian’s Book Of The Dead Kiiiiu't/iti Smut/Mule. until 3/) slum. Nib-pin. .\ comedy equivalent of the Tibetan Book of the Head.
9Julia Morris In Show And Tell
.... .’l\\('lli/)/\ lv’mnnx. until 3,".lti'c'. ‘l..\’lI/mi. l’acking more material into her xltovv than xhould he phyxically poxxihlc. lltlx .'\lele‘ lx inccxxantly effuxivc. charmingly huhhling.
Susan Morrison: My Life With The Titanic .... I'lu' Slit/til ( ‘unu'il\ ("lull l/. until 3/) .rluc. 3.55pm. Normally. anyone vv ho tried to hend your ear for live minutex on the xtihicct ol the HHS litanic vvould he conxigncd to a watery grave ol their o\\ it. So. it'x miraculoux that Stixan .\lorrixon can make it vvickedly ftmny. Richard Morton 0.0 lx’iunnv. until Jillian .\'.-l.‘_/nn. Richard .\lorton hax been coming to the l‘extnal for ten yearx. and the xtrumming (icordie comic hax hix act dovv n pat. Bit ot chatter vv ith the audience. a levy talcon the xtand-up circuit; a dig at regional xtcreotyping that hecomex part of a joke that ttxex regional xIercon pex for itx punchline: a mug ahout familiex or relationxhipx. .-\nd xtart again. .\lorton ix a decent enottgh perlormer. aI caxe vv llll hoth hix audience and hix material. hut he never really xcemx dangeroux. or truly intercxting. Still. he can he e\cecdingl_v lumty. ax when he docx llangovcr Hell in a heavy rock xty le. or the Royal family in a country xty lc. ‘l'hen again. he doex leel the need to pauxc htx xongx to underline lllx ovv n iokcx. and he LlUL‘x look like lilll) ltllll'\ tl;ttl. SUIT}. IJamex Smartr
Colin Murphy ... l’lt (l\(1ll( t. until 3-1 glue. (LII/pin It ‘lpin.’ until 3—.lll‘c‘. ‘l/nn. .-\ nevy. xofter. hut unfortunately not improved (‘olm \lurphy; xtill good tun. hut \\ llllotll the edge.
The Musical li’tiliv lliintv (tint/v. (’li IIHI. until 3/) .Ilu'c'. "UV/nu. (‘hicago‘x hotlcxt itnprov grottp return to lidmhttrgh. live xtarx in St’utvnuin.
Lee Ness: The Gay Bernard Manning /\’tII't' Illt‘tlv
.lvvt‘in/tl\
l’i‘iulut tionv. llo/viiuul lill't‘l'll. until 3/) .Iuc. ."..\'U/nn. Billed ax 'the gay Bernard \lanning'. local lidinhurgh tunnyman l.cc
\c‘xx ix doing himxclf an initixticc; hc'x far vv ittier than that comic dinoxaur. Battling agatnxt an early time xlot and a xparxe crovvd. .\'exx copex admirath hy hemg offcnxivc ax hell. and het'ating everyone and everything he cart poxxihly think of. including the audience and himxell. Beneath a xttl'l c\lcriot‘. \cxx ix It xchlting pll (ill mixanthropy. and hix relentlcxxly aggrexxive attitude to the vvorld ix quite liilat‘ioux to heltold. .\'ev er going for the lllttxl ohv ioux .\'exx hax ax xltck an onxtagc perxona ax you’ll xee m thix country. plux anyone that can xtill tell an original joke ahottt .lill l)ando and l’rinccxx Di gctx our vote. tl)oug .loltttxlottei
New Zealand’s Brat Pack 00 (it/t/t't/ [iii/limit (it lt'l‘ltti lv’im [/(IHH’. until 3~.\ll‘c'. //..\'U/nn. Proof that there ix nothing more unfunny than a hunch ol ‘merry ' comicx itnprov ixing on xtage. Newsrevue 2001: Nenty-first Birthday Edition (’it/ttil (iii/i; Illt’tlll't'. (‘ \i'ntu; until .‘(i .\uc. Ill/mt. 'l'opical xkelcll xlttm. ‘l'hrec xl‘.ll'x Ill //u' Xi’iilvlnttlt. Phil Nichol .... I’lt’iivtiiiu'. until 3“.luc. ll). [Spin .-\ comic gcnittx vvho cart take any old crap and Iranxform it into xomcthing javv -acltittgly itmny.
Nicky Silver’s Raised In Captivity l't’\llltll Ilu'itti‘t' l'.\'(' ("SI Ih‘unnnmul (’oinniunitv llu'ttti‘t'. until I." glue. ,-/UII. littropcatt premiere vv ith .\lametian
Nimrod’s Fish, Sheep and Hippos /)ll'(’l'\t' .ltti'tu IIHII\. until 35 .luc. .\’.."ll/nn. \imrod‘x l‘ixh‘x dchut xhovv promixex enticing giftx for your home and your heart.
The No-Frills Revue .yttu/Ly‘ with .lluvit'ti/ llu'iiti'i' Smuh I. /'/u' Sit/nun; until 35 .luc. “NW/tin. Sketcltcx. Sondheittt and xupcrmarkctx lrom Brighton.
Noble and Silver ooooo l’lt'iiviini't'. until 3-.liig. ‘A-lll/nn. Situationixt comedy anyone .’ N k S crank up the vvcirdncxx hut have the grace to rcmcmher that an attdiencc tx out tor a laugh. Brilliant and honkcrx.
Ross Noble .... I’lt'tivtint'i'. until 3,".lll'c'. r\'.-l.‘_/nn. See rcvicvv.
A NonSense Of Ireland 00. (iili/t't/ li’ti/limn Ilu’ttti't'. until 3-..lll'c’. 5pm. ’l'hc \vork of muxical comedian lx'ev in (iildca and hix xixtcr :\nnc trom 'l'hc \ualax. .\ .Vonvcnvi' ()I llt'ltlllt/ ix an amiahlc little hout”x vvorth ol comedy vvhich gently knockx the xttifling otit the
xhamrock and leprechaun mythical v ievv of Ireland. 'l‘hix endearing and vaguely xltamholic xhovv mi.\ex oflheat anecdotal material vv ith general banter. and even hax a xong and a poetn throvv n in for good mcaxure. l’lay ing .\lary. daughter of Potato. and HM l'illtlll) l)tttltl_\. the lvvo perky performerx drift in and out of character caxually. all the vvhile delivering a kittd of ahxtract potted hixtory of the emerald ixle. 'l‘heir ettgaging audience interaction and tluick -vv itted talent for ad-lihhing tnake for a funny. it never gut- huxting hour'x entertaimnent.
(Doug Jolmxtone) Goodbye - We Were the Nualas .... .'l\\('III/’/\ lv’iminv. until 37xlue. 7..\)ll/t/Il. 'l‘hexc girlx are xtt glad to he In er from the mainland: 'I‘ankx a million for comin‘." ln thix. 'l’he .\'ualax' farevv ell xhovv. the lttl‘ lllt‘eL‘ tlII/lle ttll in their clinging lycra Ixoundproof to cover up the ticking of their body clockxt. With a mivture of dcadpan parody and raucoux hantcr. the lrixh xinging/xtand up trio xend up everything in their path. Nothing ix xacrcd. and vv ith an orgy of rhyming coupletx. folk tuncx are taken into renditionx of ‘1 Believe I ('an lily '. l‘axt food vvorkerx vv ith falxc ltipx evolve into decidedly xurrcal dimenxionx. and lrixh xtereotypex arc tnocked. l.o\e overcoming pm erty. one Nuala vvax really delighted to vvake up on (‘hrixtmax morning to lind her tvvo feet \\ rapped tip in kitchen foil. xtill grcaxy vv ith chicken hitx. IRuth lledgcxt Dara O’Briain ooo I’tmmnm until living. NIH/nu. \Vith hix age averaging gttexxex of 37. there'x no vvondcr l)ara ( )'llriain‘x got a lot to prove before hitting the big three oh nevt year. Such an ominoux birthday prov idex the haxic arm of hix xhovv: vv ltal featx xhottld he aclitcv e heforc the end'.’ \Vith vvarm. affahle humour. he v\ cav ex m and out of thix theme uxing anecdote. ohxervation and chat. .v\ll delivered with a hig lov cly grin. he'x the xort of comedian you‘d vvant to have a pint vv ith dovv n Iltc local. And being tnore of a gentle teaxer than a great lamhaxtcr. ()'llriain hax art eaxy. conducive manner
He has an uncanny ability to banter off the cuff about any snippets of biography he’s gleaned
Raymond Mearns
Lloyd Cole Knew My Father
.. l’ll'tlktlllt‘t'. until 27xlug. 4.05pm. ‘We are rock journalixtx' declare the trio of thirtyxomcthingx hel‘ore u.x. .\'ot exactly caxt from the Hunter S. ’l‘hompxon mould perhapx Iyou can't really itnagine him in l‘red Perry. xuit and hiking hootxt hut they promixe an inxight into the vvorld of rock journalixm. Sadly. they don't deliver.
Andrew (‘ollinx. Stuart Maeonie and David ()uantick'x were xynony ttlottx vv ith the XII/2' in the 80x and early ‘)I)x. Strangely. in thix era when the Beaine Boy'x. llappy Monday x. ()axix. Nirvana. and (iunx n' Roxex all generated muxical revolutionx. thexe hackx didn't appear to he around for any of it. or at leaxt none that they could talk about anyway.
After dixpenxing with the ‘l xlept vvith Ned‘x .-\tomic l)uxthin‘ gagx you evpect a fevv xalacioux 'and Bowie dropped lti.x trouxerx’ xtoriex or even a ‘.\'oel and Liam were lighting in the fo.‘ er of the ('olumhia'. lnxtead. we get a xeant guide to what they did at the .\'.lll:' and vv hile .xome .x'toriex are fun (’ollinx heing xent xhit in the poxt by an irate ci‘uxty' hand hoaxtx ahout revievv ing gigx you never vvatchcd xeem a hit .xchoolhoy'ixh and tnoxl of thix jtlxl ixn'l very funny.
()nly' Maconie hax any real confidence and xtage prexenee. and Quantick appearx particularly uncomfortable ax a live performer. xo in a city ov erflovv ing with deftly delivered illlL'CtlUiC\ and incixive ohxerv‘ationx. they‘d hetter polixli tip their act before returning to the l-"ringe.
(Mark Rohet'lxonl
22 THE LIST FESTIVAL GUIDE .' fa . ;
for laughter. .‘vloeking the noxtalgia 'l'\’ of the moment. he xuggextx: 'I love ten minutex ago‘. A pint of your hext pleaxe. l)ara'.’ I Rtith lledgex)
Deirdre O’Kane 8. Tara Flynn - Tis Pity She’s Anonymous (ii/(tut Bit/limit (ll l’t'p/u'rininl Lounge. until 27 glue. Nam/mi. .-\cclaittted performerx come together to entertain and amuxe. Deirdre O’Kane Is Crystalised .... (ii/(Ital [iii/limit ut l’t’ltltt’l‘ltlllll Lounge. until 37xlue. III/mi. Rich llall may have cornered the market in performing xltovv x hull) ttx ltitttxelli and ax hix alterego. hut llllx accomplixhed lrixh comedienne lx giving him a run for hix money.
Obadiah Steppenwolfe III ... (itltlt'tl Hill/mitt (ll li't'tul Rmv‘ IIUHH'. until 27xlue. Spin. The Reverend ixn‘t your average holy man. lintering to a heavy metal track. drexxed in black leather and xunglaxxex. he cutx an intimidating ligure. And that'x heforc )hu've heard hix xermon. Some of it ix xo cloxe to the hone it achex. ln hix le‘tt/y Southern dravvl he oo/ex over celehriticx ((‘liff Richard vvould apparently ‘xvv im through an ocean of lllllex jltxl [0 get a xtttell of a fat lltl‘V‘x
axx' l. hix time in jail. and xinglex otit audience memherx for humiliating group xharing. Jim Muir performed vv ell with the modext. largely terrilied audience. lle xtumhled over xome material. and lttx voice grevv progrexxiv'ely faint. but judging by the number of blue xlltt‘lx in attendance. he'x htiilding a cult vv ith the (iilded Balloon xtaff at leaxt.
(Maureen lillix)
Off The Kerb Roadshow l’lt’tl.\(lllt‘(‘. until living. llpin. l’romixing comedy xltovv caxe.
One Night Only 000 .\I\' III/("v .\'lQ/Illl'(ll'(’. 'l'lu' "intuit ('ltt/t Utti ()I‘I/It' I’lllt’. until 35 slug. 4. l5/nn. Neither orthodox mime nor particularly well- executed phyxical theatre yet the performerx are xo likcahle it i.x diflicult not to get dravv n in.
One Night Stand Up :lmu' Lil/iv. ('ii/i' Iv’uvul l’i'inet' 'I‘Iu'iitre. until .3!) due. 3.30pm. (‘otttedic titaxterclaxx on
Only Child [fit/iv llitntv (tint/v. Iv’iu‘kt't (U Soul/i Brit/cc lv’t’vnurt‘t' (‘entnz until 36 slug. 2pm. Sketchy perftn'mancex.
Oram And Meeten oo
I’li'iivitnt'e. until 37xlue. 5.30pm. ()ram and Meeten are two lilokex v\ lto ohv lollxly amtixe themxelvex; delinitely a good place to xtart for a comedy double—act. The problem ix. hovv ever tnuch ftiit they had dev ixing thix hour of pxeudo~xurrcalixt xkitx. the audience doexn‘t xhare the xenxation. A holiday Ihctnc ix promixed during the [lie It'lum vAi'-xty le opening hut ix xoon abandoned in favour of xomc llL'l'\0ll\ dark humour and a recurring gag about monkey x. 'l‘heir manic xelf~ L‘Uttxcititlxllt‘xx vvorkx for them at xome pointx. hut makcx it difficult to venture into hravc. e\cititt:_‘ \veirdnexx. 'l‘heir xelf- indulgence often lL‘iI\Cx you more hetnuxed than amuxed hut occaxionally. flaxhex of their tvv ixted imagination can xlt'tke It L'llUl'tl. 'l‘lte ttlcttx are there. but [ltlx duo have to vvork a hit at tuning into Ilteir audience. I Minnie SL‘UII)
Orgasmic Nights ()rcuivinit‘ (‘nnu'ilvx Ilu/v‘riuul 'liit't’rn. until I!) glue. 7.50pm. Join 'l‘ony Wright on hix lonely odyxxcy to lind an orgaxm. (iood luck.
Pam Ann - Come Fly With Me? l’lt'tivtint‘i’ Home. until Billie. //. Ill/nu. .loin l’am :\nn ax xhc takex on the nightmare that ix the paying cuxtomer. Parsons And Naylor’s Spin
... ."\,\(’Hl/’/\' Roomy. until 37.-\ue. It)..\‘()/nn. If you're horcd of xurrealixnt. tired of improv and think all politicianx are vvankerx thix lot vv ill xcl you chortling.