Festival Comedy
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LEE KERN Promising debut from cheeky Londoner ●●●●● Inviting critics to the very first performance of his Fringe debut run, as opposed to giving himself time to
ease in, could have gone either way for Lee Kern. On the one hand, he’s got a better chance of receiving a write-up, which becomes more problematical once the zillion other stand-ups open their doors to the critics. On the other, if he’s shaky on the first night, he may hamstring his maiden Edinburgh voyage with bad reviews. Happily for this young stand-up from west London, he pretty much lives up to the title of his show (Filthy Raucous Soul Bitch) with a performance that’s
by turns cocky and gobby, cynical and liberal-minded and finally surprisingly tender. If his pacing wobbles once or twice, it’s more than made up for by the smartly constructed, if not particularly groundbreaking material, and by his slow-burning but eventually winning stage presence. Cutting backwards and forwards between a handful of troubling topics – racists, prison rape, monogamy, Jack Tweed – Kern ends on a bittersweet note with heartbreak and love. And heartbreak again. One to watch. (Miles Fielder) ■ Le Monde, 270 3914, until 30 Aug, 5.30pm, £5. DOC BROWN Ribald rhyming reflections ●●●●●
JESSICA RANSOM What would you do with a million? ●●●●●
The bunker that is the Pleasance Cellar has been a launch-pad for several notable Fringe careers. Rhod Gilbert and Jason Manford both performed their debut solo shows in there and last year Jonny Sweet swept to Best Newcomer glory on that stage. Mind you, in 2008, Adam Riches snapped his leg in half while wrestling in that room with his brother. Quite what fate is in store for former Newsrevue member and Armstrong and Miller actress Jessica Ransom in unclear. In Ransom’s Millions, she explores our obsession with loot through a
bunch of characters who are all trying to get their paws on a million quid which is being given away by a local businessman. Not for any philanthropic reasons, mind, as he needs to desperately get shot of this big bundle of stolen cash. To her credit, Ransom doesn’t spend overly long on any of the characters at any one time (including an annoying actress and a musclebound female) while the knockabout banter with the audience is assured. (Brian Donaldson) ■ Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 30 Aug (not 16), 4.45pm, £8.50–£10.50 (£7–£9).
34 THE LIST 12–19 Aug 2010
There are three things you should know about London’s hip hop parodist Doc Brown. One: he’s superstar author Zadie Smith’s little brother. Two: he’s had several brushes with pop success, having toured with De La Soul and Mark Ronson. Three: more than anything else in life, he wishes David Attenborough was his grandpa. Brown – alias rapper-turned-comedian Ben Smith – is a warm and engaging performer, and his variously ribald and tender reflections on success and (mainly) disappointment are coolly counterpointed with well-pitched musical interludes.
He’s best when mocking and deconstructing his beloved hip hop culture – Smith still has an erudite way with a rhyme – and his observations on the ‘street’ merits of overhead projectors or on urban music’s influence on contemporary linguistics are gladdening. Some of Brown’s
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reflections are laboured – the celebrity name-dropping, the details of his fall from grace – but he’s poignant, moving and (almost) convincing when concluding that his once insatiable lust for fame has been usurped by love for his young family. Until you remember that he’s still on the stage. (Nicola Meighan) ■Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 29 Aug (not 16), 7pm, £9–£9.50 (£7.50–£8). JOE ROWNTREE Paranoia revolves around this comic’s past ●●●●●
It’s certainly brave of accomplished Fringe debutant Joe Rowntree to show us clips of him early on in his career being really rubbish on stage and having humiliation heaped upon him by a cruel compere. This, alongside the hack story of the crazy things that occur on the night-bus thanks to the gallery of stereotypical rogues who inhabit them, ultimately doesn’t add a whole amount to his arresting central story of the years he has spent being crippled by paranoia. Seems that Rowntree has plenty to be concerned about given the unfortunate incidents that happened to him in Africa and Barcelona. Comedy geeks out there might be
disappointed that Peaceful Worrier has nothing about the story behind his collaboration with Laura Solon, which terminated shortly before the Fringe of 2005. History shows that the final Perrier Award was won that year by solo character comedian Laura Solon. Maybe he’s saving that little tale for his follow-up? (Brian Donaldson) ■ Gilded Balloon Teviot, 622 6552, until 29 Aug (not 16), 7.45pm, £9–£10 (£7–£9).
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