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TOP5 FREE FRINGE
MAX AND IVAN TV-influenced sketch show with a devastating mission to entertain for GLASGOW COMEDY see non-Festival magazine
of 2001, sees some positives oozing out of this pus-riddled BBC3 disaster. ‘I think it’s shown how difficult it is to do good sketches and I hope people would watch their show and develop a new found respect for sketch comedy.’ Last year, Goldsmith teamed up with Richard Sandling (the film obsessive who has performed three Fringe shows about his love of VHS over DVD) for an hour of unflashy, chatty routines which would have offended very few but satisfied the many.
There were no silly wigs, no daft props and as for stage lighting: you should find yourself grateful the whole thing wasn’t conducted in the pitch black. ‘I have an aversion to carrying props around because I’ve been a street performer and was used to lugging around lots of gear. The more we write material the more we liked ad
hoc performing and relying on people’s imagination. We briefly discussed the use of a paperclip in this year’s show but a final decision has yet to be taken.’ It really is the little things that can make such a big difference. (Brian Donaldson) ■ Pleasance Dome, 556 6550, 9–30 Aug (not 19), 3.45pm, £8–£9 (£6.50–£7.50). Previews until 8 Aug, £5.
MIKE WOZNIAK Portsmouth Pole ponders perspective, pressure, penis pain
Whether you happened to be members of Mike Wozniak’s family or complete strangers, there’s a chance that on viewing his debut solo set last August, much of your time would have been spent clenching or crossing some part of your body. The Wozniaks would have felt a gut reaction at the personal nature of the material, especially pertaining to papa Wozniak, a keen amateur scientist, while any penis-laden man would have sat less than comfortably on hearing the tender details of the surreal mishaps inflicted upon Mike’s member down the years. And yet, amazingly, there is a market for such brutal material, as his
recent trip to Adelaide proved. ‘I was on a showcase called the Best of the Edinburgh Fest alongside Jarlath Regan and Jason Cook and it took a few days to work out what they were into,’ recalls the Portsmouth Pole. ‘I found that they actually seemed to prefer the penis stuff to the non-penis stuff. With the weekend Adelaide crowd, the further out I ventured from the penis, the less happy they became.’
Wozniak’s August 2008 ended with him scooping the Amused Moose prize and finding himself on the shortlist for if.comedy Best Newcomer. This year, he’s taking part in a sketch show, Superclump, in the afternoon and stamping around in Clown Shoes in the evening. So, does he feel any extra pressure with following up such a career-moulding Fringe? ‘I’d probably put the same amount of pressure on myself anyway. I’m taking another hour up and want to make it better than last year, the same as anyone. But to most people in the universe, it isn’t actually that important. It would be easy to get into your Edinburgh bubble, have a couple of bad shows and think “this is the end of it, I’m ostracised from society, I need to find a new career”. I think I’ll find a sense of perspective on things.’ (Brian Donaldson) ■ Superclump, GRV, 226 0000, 8–30 Aug (not 19), 2.40pm, £5. Previews 6 & 7 Aug, £2.50; Mike Wozniak, Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, 9–31 Aug (not 19), 6pm, £8.50–£9.50 (£7–£8). Previews until 8 Aug, £5.
Brian Donaldson helps you conquer the global financial meltdown by picking out some funny shows for nowt pounds
Jessica Delfino: I Wanna Be Famous She may seek fame but not if the Catholic League have their way. Boy, they’re not keen on some of her naughtier comedy tunes which she once took on her Merry Shitmas Tour. Jekyll & Hyde, 225 2022, 6–25 Aug, 9.55pm. Bitch Got Owned! Sajeela Kershi was the ‘outraged woman’ in Brendon Burns’ if.comedy winning show from 2007 but now she’s stepping out of the shadows for her debut solo effort. Time to hear from the real woman behind the furore. Espionage, 477 7007, 6–31 Aug (not 12, 19, 26), 5.10pm.
David, Mark and Teddy: How to Fake Basic Human Emotions Three of this proud nation’s finest upcoming talents merge to tell some gags with messrs Heffron, Nelson and, um, Teddy offloading the odd bit of wonderfully offensive material. The Hive, 556 0444, 6–30 Aug, 7pm.
Hatty and Tony Rub It Better She was part of a dance troupe called the Actionettes. He appeared in The Office and has written for Al Murray. Together they’re doing stand-up and sketches for your guilty pleasure. Meadow Bar, 667 6907, 6–30 Aug (not 10, 24), 1pm. Yianni Agisilaou’s Free Stand- Up Spectacular The very blue- eyed Aussie comic now firmly ensconced in the UK presents an hour of stand-up with special guests and ‘fun’. The Rowan Caves, 226 0000, 8–29 Aug (not 10, 17, 24), 6pm.
‘Last year we opened to no one in the audience,’ says Iván (Ih-vaan), the bearded half of comedy duo Max and Iván. But by the end of August their debut show, Max and Iván Exposed, was routinely selling out. That success was thanks in part to overwhelmingly positive word of mouth. One enthusiastic attendee even hung a handcrafted banner from an apartment window overlooking the Royal Mile. So what makes people so keen to give the pair free publicity? ‘We’ve got a secret flyering technique,’ Iván says. ‘We just talk to people on the Royal Mile, rather than lie down on the floor naked . . . ‘ ‘ . . . with a flyer between your butt
cheeks,’ Max finishes for him.
But that can’t be the whole story? Their TV-themed 2009 show, Televisionaries has already received much pre-Fringe publicity, though it hasn’t all been accurate. ‘People have come expecting a Chris Morris-esque evisceration of the world’s media,’ says Max, ‘but it’s just a sketch show.’
Iván clarifies: ‘The sketches are like flicking through the channels. We’re just trying to make people laugh, rather than make a political statement.’ Perhaps that’s the real secret behind their success. (Matt Boothman) ■ C central, 0845 260 1234, 7–31 Aug (not 18), 6.55pm, £8.50–£10.50 (£7.50–£9.50).
KIOSK OF CHAMPIONS Lo-fi, no-budget sketch double act fun that’s big on imagination The words ‘Horne’ and ‘Corden’ have struck terror into those preaching good things about young comedy in this country. But Stuart Goldsmith, the Scottish National Busking Champion
30 THE LIST FESTIVAL MAGAZINE 6–13 Aug 2009