F E S T I VA L C O M E DY | Reviews
JACOB HAWLEY: FALIRAKI Sensitive and funny hour about love and tattoos ●●●●●
In the BBC Sounds programme he presents about the current state of drug culture, young comic Jacob Hawley keeps his mind wide open to arguments across all sides of the debate. In Faliraki, his second Fringe hour after last year’s acclaimed Howl, he hopes that audiences will be of a similarly welcoming disposition as he takes on a variety of subjects. Kicking off with a quick straw poll of those who’ve had tattoos
that they ultimately regretted, he talks of his own experience of the body-art industry. Boxing, feminism, mental health, social mobility, the very different way that people booked holidays in the not-so distant past, hip hop artists who say the wrong thing, and folk who consume crack cocaine on the night-bus are all engaged with in this constantly entertaining and often thought-provoking set. Love is at the heart of this affair, though, with two key relationships
forming the main narrative thrust. Language barriers (and an appalling act of betrayal) caused some difficulties with the holiday relationship which inspired the show’s title (‘Faliraki is a cheaper Ibiza’), while we hear of Hawley’s current partnership which seems embedded in a more solid foundation. Accepting one another’s idiosyncrasies keeps things ticking over and a trip to her Irish hometown opened up Hawley’s eyes to some unexpected realities.
To his eternal credit, Hawley’s approach to veganism (his girlfriend follows a plant-based diet) deviates from the knee-jerk negativity which appears to be thriving among comics at this year’s Fringe, and leads to a finale which brings the show full circle and genuinely tugs on the emotions. With the comedy world at his feet, Jacob Hawley looks like making a serious impression on the Fringe with his sensitive and joke-busy hours. He’s already shaping up as a must-see staple in the years to come. (Brian Donaldson) n Just the Tonic at The Mash House, until 25 Aug, 5.15pm, £6 (£4) in advance or donations at the venue.
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THE DELIGHTFUL SAUSAGE: GINSTER’S PARADISE Solid and silly character fun ●●●●●
NICK HELM: PHOENIX FROM THE FLAMES Fierce show but with added sensitivity ●●●●● ISMA ALMAS: ABOUT A BUOY Fearless performer delivers a moving show ●●●●●
Bored of overpriced, non-entertaining entertainment? You should consider a holiday at Ginster’s, where Salmon Coats welcome you to play bingo and enter meat raffles. Dressed in matching pale-pink blazers, Amy Gledhill and Chris Cantrill are The Delightful Sausage, a dynamite double act from Yorkshire providing regular belly laughs through their smart Northern character comedy, partly set in a pub called The Cannon and Ball. But behind all the wide grins, unwanted sexual advances and passive aggressive instructions to chalet dwellers, all is not well. ‘Christopher Louise’ (the full title he gets onstage) is worried that it’s curtains for his comedy career, nicely noting that’s it’s not the best time to be a straight white man in the light entertainment industry. Meanwhile, Amy has been offered an opportunity to spread her wings and go solo with her ‘lady comedy’. This is solid comedy if you’re into funny nonsense of the Vic and Bob style, featuring mild seaside smut, beautiful Hull vowels and a terrifying kids mascot called Colonel Whippy, from a couple of very likeable prats with talent in spades. (Claire Sawers) n Monkey Barrel, until 25 Aug, noon, £5–£7 in advance or donations at the venue.
56 THE LIST FESTIVAL 14–26 Aug 2019
With a feather boa, gold hotpants and light-up trainers, Nick Helm makes a triumphant full-show return to Edinburgh after a six-year gap, featuring all the best elements of the comedian’s bombastic self but with added anger, unfortunate anecdotes and plenty of c-bombs thrown in for good measure. Helm takes aim at his own career with references
to hit BBC show Uncle and the more recent Sky comedy The Reluctant Landlord, created by Romesh Ranganathan, who – as Helm bitterly reminds us – started after he did and is somehow still everywhere. His metal-inspired anthemic singalongs are very much present and excellent, and the accompanying slideshow of images provides fragments of hilarity as words like ‘penis’ and ‘cunt’ match up with images of the likes of Donald Trump and Boris Johnson. But Helm takes a step away from his brutal onstage persona to discuss more serious issues, including his own mental health and experiences with anxiety, self- loathing and different types of anti-depressants. It’s an unexpected but effective pivot, adding moments of self-analysis and sensitivity to an otherwise fierce and riotous hour. (Arusa Qureshi) n Pleasance Dome, until 24 Aug, 5.40pm, £12.50– £14 (£11.50–£13).
Life didn’t give Isma Almas the easiest option when it made her a gay Pakistani Muslim. But now she’s a little older, she’s content to be herself and is happily giving lots back with her social-worker career path and by adopting a child, picked specifically because of the shocking stats on adopting boys of African descent.
Almas’ story is a moving one, and in parts she
relates her tale with tears visibly welling in her eyes. She’s an incredibly warm performer, oozing likeability and easy charm. But she’s also not one to shy away from a tricky or uncomfortable topic either; when she first started to perform stand-up she would appear on stage in a burka. Here she revisits incidents of horrific racism from her own 70s childhood in Bradford where her teacher at school bullied her or the incident of outright bigotry on the NHS when she had her tonsils taken out. Nor is she afraid of a close-to-the-bone gag, such
as when she compares adoption to a household task or examining whose culture is the best of all in the Indian sub-continent. A gently funny hour that is high on passion. (Marissa Burgess) n Gilded Balloon Teviot, until 26 Aug, 2.45pm, £8.50–£9.50 (£7.50–£8.50).