Gilded Balloon Teviot Balcony

 3rd – 28th August

£8.50 (£7.50)

 Material : Delivery :  Laughs :

‘What is the most expensive purchase we make in our life time? The Government ?’

Picture this!!   A small, low-ceiling, black drapes hung around all the walls, nestling in the lower depths of Teviot Row House.  Tax diagrams everywhere, a mega-phone and a microphone, paving the way for Dominic Frisby & his new show.  As the lights dimmed, a figure emerges from a dark corner… adorned with a bowler hat, chequer’d suit and spectacles he does indeed resemble the Tax Man of our haunted dreams. In fact, an hour of comedy on Tax and the HMRC would be enough to scare anyone, but could we be wrong? With lawyers and tax evaders in the firing line, we were soon informed of the wicked ways of how the government chips away at our hard earned pounds.  This was more informative story telling than fast-paced comedy show. With Dominic’s delivery  consistent, precise and comfortably paced, you could quantify the essence of a well-researched show.  With his swing-o-meter in hand, we discovered how every disaster has its tax point, and who pays for it…  us ?  Tax is power, power is money, and money needs to be taxed… back to square one.

If you enjoy a laid-back, fun-loving attitude towards tax, or you want to know how to avoid paying tax, then this show will delight you.  I think anymore than an hour would have pulled the “T” out of tax, & of course more jokes would have got more laughs. But when he did get funny, Dominic hit home with a low punch to the stomach.  Politics, money, voting, tax inquiries, and expensive calls to the HMRC all contribute to a Fringe show abounding with thought-provoking points. Whether Dominic makes you laugh, shout or cry, one thing is for sure you’ll leave his side a more educated soul in the art of Tax and Taxes. Well done Dominic for putting the “F” word back into governmental institutions… & when I say F, I mean fun, fun, fun!

Reviewed by Raymondo Speedie

The Pleasance

Aug 3-28 : (21.45)

Material : Delivery :  Laughs :

Tom Ward popped my cherry for the Fringe this year! Cracking show… absolutely loved it! He was performing at the Pleasance, in its basement, a great venue with a really intimate feel. This intimacy proper suited the show, for Tom is the kind of mate everyone wishes they had. The geezer you would be making sure came to your parties to keep everyone entertained. Funny! Funny! Funny!  His comedy is of the observational kind, and, god bless him, he looks at things through rose-tinted spectacles… his jokes never offended anyone once. Ward’s stories are snappy and the punchlines just keep on coming. Engaging from start to finish, Tom just about pulled the full 50 minutes off, despite a couple of monologues bobbin’ on for a bit – but I guess I was hooked on his snappier stuff by then. As I departed the Pleasance I felt a sneaky feeling well-up that Tom was bound for stardom… if he gets a proper haircut. A class act!

Reviewer : Mark Parker

Heroes @ The Hive

Aug 6-28

Ticket in advance / Pay what you like

Laughs:    Material:    Delivery: 

In 1974, sometime after a celebrity party near Luton, Tommy Cooper & Bjorn Borg’s love child was born. His name is Paul Currie, a ridiculously funny man who has this sterling ability to control the actions of every person in his large crowd. As I watched him get them all standing, dancing & singing ‘The Girl from Ipanema’ in total unison, I’m like this guy’s more charismatic than Napoleon. In fact, if Currie would have ordered the Old Gaurd to advance on the British at Waterloo, they would never have turned back & fled – he’s that bloody commanding. Its one of the best things I’ve ever seen at the Fringe – I say thing because I’m not quite sure what his show actually is. I guess its slapstickian vaudeville driven in its highest gear by an incredibly amendable comedian.

He makes his entrance in a spectacular fashion, gliding about the room to some euphoric music… I swear down, the trip to see Currie is worth it for this alone. Absolutely brilliant. From here, we are given an open invitation to peruse the madcap mentalities of this laugh-a-second madman, from his Jesus-sings-Madonna routine to a wonderful sequence when he sings a song called ‘Telephone-lips.’ Also, when you have seen Currie doing Christoper Walken doing Star Wars, you really know you have lived. The camaraderie that Currie blew throughout the audience is something I have never actually seen outside of, say, a Butlins holiday camp – but witnessing it happen among the quasi-cynical crowds of the Edinburgh fringe was a new experience. I do urge you, your pals, & their pals n’all, who you have never met, to see Currie while he’s in town. He’s that good.

Reviewer : Damian Beeson Bullen

Stand IV (28 York Place)

4^th – 28^th August 2016 (16.45)

£7 (£6)

Material : Delivery :  Laughs :

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The Stand once again looks set to dominate Edinburgh’s Comedy Fringe as it regally resides over York Place with its impressive choice of six venues sporadically splattered along both sides of the street. Each venue considerately caters well to the thirsty audience by positioning itself close to a convenient watering hole or such like, providing refreshments, albeit in the form of the plastic pint, to the eager festival thrill seeker …such as myself.

Although this evening’s act was kicking off rather early to engage in such a tipple, it felt disconcertingly rude not to partake. And so, armed with a cold, squishy-plastic Magners, I nudged my way along the creepy Spielberg corridor to a cosy, if somewhat compact- studio (den) situated opposite the street from the original Stand venue, where I would witness the unravelling of Mr John Pendal, ‘International Man of Leather’.

Having little prior knowledge of Mr Pendal, I had only the rather intriguing and somewhat raucous title to base my preconceptions upon, and correctly predicted that the evening would have at least some level of ‘risque’ dialogue. Not to be disappointed, immediately upon entering the venue, I was presented with a pencil and paper, and politely asked to write down ‘something that turned me on’. Which I was assured would remain anonymous… Of course it would, I thought to myself, as I begun exploring my options and contemplating which inner secret to sully the innocent white square in my hand.

For a reasonably salacious headline, I expected perhaps a more intimidating engagement (and prepared for such by sitting myself as far back as possible, until I was all but perched upon the air conditioning unit). However, the man himself was anything but frightening, and in fact he presented himself as really rather endearing. Although “dressed as a lesbian” (sic) standing tall in a chequered shirt tucked tight into his jeans, and sporting a thin pencil black tie,  the only hint that there may perhaps be a more experimental side to this sweet natured rogue was the leather cuffs and a fleeting glimpse of some thick gold chains around his neck.

He embarked on a tale of his conflict with his strict Baptist upbringing and how he came to be crowned International Man of Leather amidst some strong competition, delivering fluid, punchy and often genuine hilariously comic observations. He relates the surprising and vastly contrasting international attitudes to sex from Asia to Europe which he encountered during his colourful travels. He challenges the essence of religion with stark logic, intriguing facts, fast-paced wit and comic tales, all the while, pacifying any potential offence in the audience with large fluffy kitten placards.

The audience genuinely warmed to this endearing man, whose sexual exploits and adventures as he travelled all over the world in his acclaimed title seemed remarkably contrasting to his gentle, rather conservative presentation. And it was apparent his genuine desire to break down preconceived notions against self-expression and sexual exploration. His set was cleverly presented with a splashing of retro vibes and geeky science, engaging the audience with clever ideas, such as engineering three-dimensional sexual orientation graphs while throwing in some nostalgic comedic references to Tupperware and Thunderbirds.

Given this was the first night of the performance, it was excusable that his first few jokes were lacking somewhat in delivery, but he quickly recovered and gained confidence, settling comfortably into his set and winning the crowd round effortlessly. Perhaps he could have been a bit more risqué, I believe he had a few more ‘water sports on acid’ stories up his sleeve, but overall, he delivered relaxed and intelligent stand-up comedy, often fascinating and insightful – and I have left with a new-found desire to visit Japan, for an entirely different set of reasons.

Reviewer: Teri Welsh