FESTIVAL COMEDY REVIEWS
LLOYD LANGFORD One day in his life ●●●●●
Lloyd Langford’s fourth solo show at the Fringe is structured around a single day. Well, not a whole day, just an hour. Told within the space of 60 min- utes, he notes this is a bit like Jack Bauer but with- out the tension. In fact the show’s framework con- sists of him getting up and realising his housemate has eaten his bread and having to buy another. The whole premise is a flimsy one from which to
tell some solid stand-up. You could say it’s a parody of the Fringe’s requirement of stand-ups to come up with some kind of theme. But Langford doesn’t real- ly need any more structure for this hour of decent material. Around the bread-mission premise he weaves vaguely connected routines about dog poo and a stag do on a canal boat, which culminates in a particularly apt description of a stripper’s finale. All good fun. (Marissa Burgess) ■ Assembly Rooms, 0844 693 3008, until 26 Aug (not 13), 7.45pm, £10 (£9).
LUCY PORTER Big on likeability, short on solid material ●●●●●
Yes, yes: it’s easy to knock the nice girl act. But as her fans will attest, that’s exactly what Lucy Porter is. Far from ripping off the shackles of her ‘lovely wee lass’ persona, Porter embraces it with People Person. Back on the Fringe scene after a two-year hiatus knocking out a pair of babies in ‘one tax year’, Porter has no problem living up to the show’s nicey nice moniker.
As she works her hit-and-miss material about how to find new friends in her thirties and her recent foray into motherhood, the diminutive comic’s impish charms are certainly in residence. But while her quick wit and easy rapport with the audience is strong and her likeability plain to see (well honed from her Mock the Week and Radio 4 days), in terms of laugh-out-loud funnies, Porter leaves you wanting.
There are seeds of some decent material here, not least when Porter is letting go on the subjects people can really relate to: the loneliness of motherhood, the physical aftermath of giving birth, the banality of ‘grown up’ conversations. In fact, she is at her best when cast slightly adrift. And as the show progresses, there’s a feeling of a layer being stripped back. She could do ‘a whole show’ on Richard Madeley from her days working with him on telly, she
announces with a knowing grin (do it, do it!), while her reference to Russell Kane as ‘fanny wrap’ gets one of the biggest laughs of her teatime slot. But any edginess is quickly blunted by a swift retreat to safer territory about Argos and baby/parent groups. There’s little doubt that the strangely affecting pay-off about new friend Sophie is worth the wait, but this show lacks the comedy spice that could have made it a little naughty, as well as nice. (Anna Millar) ■ The Stand, 558 7272, until 26 Aug (not 13, 20), 5.15pm, £10 (£9).
ANDREW DOYLE Filthy talk raised to high heaven ●●●●● JENNY FAWCETT A RADA fine character gawkfest ●●●●●
Former teacher and ‘predatory’ homosexual Andrew Doyle has all the makings of a class act. Having doled out cards asking us what we think is ‘most likely to turn on’ our fellow audience members, he’s off on a rambunctious verbal riot of smarts and well- orchestrated bonking banter. As the audience streams in, Jenny Fawcett’s already noting our names on a bit of paper. A gawky figure sporting a criminally uncool Nigel Kennedy T-shirt, Fawcett tells us of the momentous day – September 11 2001 – when she tap-danced in a talent contest and first spotted her napkin-chasing beloved.
Still, our ‘bad Catholic’ does begin his hour with The unhinged nerd is a familiar figure, but Fawcett
a prayer. And, largely, the comedy Gods answer him. The Queen, Gary Barlow and reality TV form the material for withering put-downs, while terrorism, abortion and swastika chatter allow our fearless host to fly close enough to the wind to keep the momen- tum going. The show does falter when Doyle incor- porates the aforementioned card answers as part of an ‘improv’ skit, but even then Doyle’s exuberant delivery makes it difficult to hold it against him. If God loves a tryer, then God knows Doyle’s doing his best. (Anna Millar) ■ The Caves, 556 5375, until 26 Aug (not 14), 8pm, £7.50 (£6.50). is a skilfully written creation. The performance too is beautifully nuanced, whether it’s a look over her glasses or the slow-motion sequence featuring a peeled orange. It’s no surprise to learn that behind Fawcett is the RADA-trained Louise Ford (of Ford & Akram fame). With these skills she relates tales of her pervert uncle and her first sighting of Peter Roderick Dink, a man she loves with such ardour she can draw his hairy calf muscle from memory. Funny, weird and quirky: everything a Fringe show should be. (Marissa Burgess) ■ Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 27 Aug (not 13), 12.50pm, £8–£8.50 (£7–£7.50).
38 THE LIST 9–16 Aug 2012