SIMON WOODROFFE: HOW I GOT MY Y0!
Y0? No 0
Sin on 7/090“)th rrtakes tfllllla"l Sushr OWENS great restat/arits. and is a dab hand at the self- help guru lark He is not, however. an ageing rock singer or star of the stage, This one-nwan slio is a tale of hard graft and good ideas as V‘.’oodroffe went from uriderachievrng schoolboy to overachieying Yo! Sushi mogul but feels more of a business strategies or personal riiotivation class than anything else.
He sings lbadlyi and even if he doesn't care that he's making a tit of himself. what about the poor people who have to cough up for this? Inspiring? Well. maybe if we could step Our toes curling. (Mark Robertson) I Pleasance Cei/rtyard. 556 (5550. until 30 Aug. 2.50pm, [9504?] 7.50 (Fa—5i 70).
REBECCA CARRINGTON: ME AND MY CELLO
Musical comedy for the less young 00
Rebecca Carrington has two assets: her looks and her cello-playing ability. They're both gLiite striking and this show seeks to make the most of them; if yOLi've got it. flaunt it. as they say. Sadly. when the two come together for comedy. both are prostituted with embarrassing mediocrity. USing the cello as a tool for her sexrness is a trick she uses again and again and again. Her material on CIaSSic FM and Beyonce. impreSSions of numer0us nationalities and pops at Jamie Cullum are weak and fame. The show is described as sassy: well. maybe in a charm-a- room-of-Radio-2- pensioners-kind-of-way when standards have flopped with the rest of it. (Ruth Hedges) I P/easarice Courtyard. 556 6550. until 29 Aug (not 23). 3. 75pm. 88.50-87050 (£7439).
for
see non-festival rnagaane
TONY LAW: A TONY LAW SHOW
Singing, dancing and dinosaur actions .00.
After introducing himself with a rambling anecdote about vacuum cleaners and mad people, Tony Law bounds onto the stage and kicks off with a presentation of his truck convoy. One of the Dinks this year and last, this likeable Canadian gives the impression of being naive and maybe a little crazy. He lets us know pretty quickly that he's not come to a ‘middle-class liberal arts festival to tell people what they already think'. Sure, he might get all deep on us, and we might learn stuff. Most of all though, this show is going to be ‘dangerous’. Someone might even get electrocuted.
In fact, this performance has everything: not just witty, sharp stand-up but also dancing, singing and dinosaur actions, all of which delivered almost in the style of a child with ADHD. There is never a dull moment as he flips channels and shares his inner voice: ‘OK, easy on the self-deprecating comments, Tone.‘ lf jokes don't quite work, we’re in on that too. ‘I went on too long with that, didn't I?’
Edinburgh stand-up staples are avoided in favour of deceptively playful topics, skilful engagement with the audience and humour that teeters deliciously on the edge of going too far. Skipping lightly from time travel on a lawnmower to serial killing, to misplaced nostalgia for an era long past, it’s as if this stuff is just popping into his head. But it’s not; it's well prepared, clever, and very, very funny. A breath of fresh air. (Anna Shipman) I Underbel/y, 0870 745 3083. until 29 Aug. 70. 75pm. fo50~lf 70. 50 (58—519,).
GAVIN AND GAVIN IN OUR FUNNY BONES Sibling bitchiness and absurdist characters COO
They look like butter wouldn't melt in their mouths but GaVIn and GaVin know how to turn the air blue. so they do. These charming Sisters lace their somewhat daft character comedy With Sibling bitchiness: “You'll notice Laur'etta's much older than me,’ c0untered With: 'Of course. there's Sharon's weight issue' And while they clearly know their way around a 'fuck' and a 'Cunt'. at heart this is fairly gentle stuff.
A spoof fly-on-the-wall documentary format allows the pair to explore plenty of characters. something they do With occaSional flashes of brilliance amid a general smattering of chuckle- wonhy material.
(Doug Johnstone)
I Assembly Rooms. 226 2428. until 30 Aug. 2.45pm, [9—9 70 (CB—f9).
4 POOFS AND A PIANO: NEVER MIND THE BOTOX
Outrageous parodies and saucy innuendoes 000
Never having been a fan of Jonathan Ross and therefore not having had the diSpleasure of his Friday night chat show. I wouldn't have recognised the 4 Poofs or. indeed. their piano if I'd met them in my soup. Their opening number ann0unces. 'There's More to Us Than Being a House Band' and
32 THE LIST FESTIVAL MAGAZINE 19—26 Aug 200.:
to back this up. the Poets stage show is an innuendo-fuelled trip down the decades. featuring outrageous parodies of the Supremes. Pan's People and Kate Bush.
Though some of the catty Jokes and asides are a bit feeble. and the show dips a bit in the ihdiyidual segments. there are plenty of energetic showstoppers to enjoy. (Allan Radcliffe) I P/easance COi/rtyard. 556 6550. unti/ 30 Aug. 4. 70pm, f9-L‘70 (USO—£8.50).
ANDREW MAXWELL: ‘THIS IS MY HOUR’
Belly-laughing blarney 0...
Andrew Maxwell is a laid back. gentle kind of guy. He's the sod of comic whose thoughtful anecdotes interspersed with the odd incredulous explosion provokes wide smiles in between belly laughs. Pondenngthe ‘whatever' attitude of those of us who dwell on these ‘rainy islands'. Maxwell imagines terrorists endeavouring to hijack the 187 to Alicante and meeting With unprecedented reSistance from determined budget holidaymakers. He also argues a watertight case for teenage mothers and refugees. It'll take a moment to adjust to the wee Irish comic's gentle pace. but his easygoing blarney is incredibly infectious and it won‘t be long before youre
smiling and guffaWing in agreement.
(Allan Radcliffe)
I Pod Deco, 08707 557 705. unti/ 29 Aug. 9.35pm. 5 lO—l.‘ 7250 (£8.50).
BRITISH TELEVISION EXPLAINED Your viewing habits analysed 00.
Armed With Just a rubbish flip-chart. the writers of Great Britain Explained have cobbled together a high-speed verbal eVisceration of British televiSion that barely gives the audience a chance to catch breath. Starting With 40 reasons why TV is shite and ending With a hilarious run-down of the top 25 words that a BBC poll found to be highly offenSive. presenters Colin Ramone and John Scott romp ferOCiously through their material. While it's strangely entertaining to watch grown men waggle their burns to TotP ClaSSlCS. there's a lot to be said for movrng the pace so quickly that the audience barely has time to ponder the less amUSlng moments. (Katy McAulay) I Stand II. 558 7272. mm 30 Aug. 6.30pm, £6.
GARY LE STRANGE: FACE ACADEMY
New Romance, old material 000
Let's dance. Gary Le Strange. Winner of the 2003 Perrier Newcomer Award. is back With a new show to plug in his electrics and flood
NEXT ISSUE OUT
riiediocrity out of your system. Bathed in PVC from head to toe. Ga/ strikes a pose
sor newhere between DaVId Rome and Eddie l/xard.
The songs have some sweet touches and for fans of the glittering New Romantic age. the tunes still cause shimmers of electriCIty and laughs. but the chat doesn't bear up. His cult status doesn't seem to be catching on and Gary may soon be a stranger if the act doesn't turn up a notch. (Ruth Hedges)
I Pod Deco. 08 707 557 705. uni/I29 Aug. 70. 25pm, E9. 50—57 M (538.50).
MORE! MORE! MISS SIMPSON
Civil servant rapper COO
Currently reigning championless) of the UK Allcomers Poetry Slain and formerly DaVid Blunkett's private seCretary. Jude Simpson returns armed wrth an assorted (handlbag of entertaining rhyming comedy and pretty crap gurtar playing.
With bright eyes and a friendly demeanour, the poet breaches topics close to the female heart (dieting and dating) in her own brand of polite hip hop. She knows she's no Mike Skinner. claiming: ‘l'm a girl who lOVes the
glamour of a verse Willi perfect grairiinar.' But she generates feelgood funny, if occasionally cheesy lines, some of which are so effective that I'm persuaded to wear an ‘l love Andrew Marr' badge
(Katy McAulayi
I P/er'isarrie UU/lli), ."if'ifi (i550, urifi/ 28 Aug, 3.30pm. 58 if) l§'(5.3')()~§‘7.5)()).
MILTON JONES: A ROUGH GUIDE
Fast paced surrealism COO
Milton Jones is an accomplished stand up. havrng picked up the Perrier Newcomer back in 1996 and a Time Out Award in 2003. The Jokes come thick and last. an almost nonstop diatribe .vith the most laconic of deliveries. An air of surrealisrri pervades his jumbled run through the alphabet — an El)Cy(,‘/(){)(}(}d/{l Britannica for the insane. Words are twrsted into new double meanings and the guickfire approach means even the mediocre gags are quickly forgotten, and far more hit their target than fail. Fantastical obser/ations and leaps of imagination mean this is a solid 55 minutes of no- nonsense comedy. (Henhy NorthrnOre) I Underbefly, 0870 745 3083. until 29 Aug, 7.20pm, {9—1070 (EB—£9).