INTERVIEW: Mark Watson, Alex Horne and Tim Key

The Edinburgh Fringe has always been a place where groups of comedians have made comedy alliances over heroic quantities of alcohol and shared comedic tastes. Over the years this has produced a veritable smorgasbord of shows which have come to define the Fringe - from Phil Nichol’s various offerings through the Comedian’s Theatre Company, to Kitson, Zaltzman, Cochrane and O’Docherty’s inspired japery at the Honourable Men of Art.

One of the newer comedy collectives consists of core members Mark Watson, Alex Horne and Tim Key. The three friends have been working together on projects since 2001 and last year premiered the Fringe’s first interactive quiz show – We Need Answers. The Void met up with the trio to chat about how they were enjoying Fringe 2008 and how the late-night game show came about.

Mark Watson

We Need Answers pitches comedians into a quiz battle like no other. Each night there is a head-to-head where only the brainiest will march onto the next round. The winner (last year Paul Sinha beat Josie Long in a tense battle) is crowned quiz champion of the Fringe. This year’s entrants include Fringe legends like Rich Hall, Richard Herring and Dan Antopolski.

Alex explains how the show came about: “My wife met a guy from AQA [a text service which promises to answer any question for a quid] a couple of years ago who said he would like to work with us on something and Mark said he would like to do it. We all genuinely use AQA all the time – it’s really funny – so we said we would be interested in doing something with them.

Alex Horne

“Basically they supply us with all the questions which are sent in by people at the Fringe and we pick the best ones. For example, last year we had a question which was ‘how do you make an egg bouncy’. The answer is to soak it in vinegar for 48 hours.”

While the trio clearly work well together they are not afraid of letting comedians out of their circle of friends onto the show. Mark says: “We felt we should have an enjoyable mix of styles or there would be a danger of the whole thing becoming one big in-joke.” Tim adds: “It also adds an element of danger. When Brendon Burns arrived on the scene last year it got pretty interesting because we’re all basically quite scared of him.

“During one of Mark’s long shows me and Burnsy just screamed at him constantly and I ended up pretty much having a physical stand-off with him. This year we have Jim Jeffries appearing so we’ve just substituted one sociopathic Aussie for another.”

The show consists of various rounds with Mark hosting, Tim the question-master and Alex dealing with the technical side of things. It tends to end up being a fantastically chaotic hour and is the perfect late-night gig in that you never really know what direction it will take next.

Meanwhile, the three amigos are all continuing their day jobs with their own shows at the Fringe. Mark is playing the Pleasance Grand for the first time this year – one of the largest venues at the Fringe. Alex is performing a full run of his new show, Wordwatching, a follow-up, of sorts, to last year’s Birdwatching. Finally, Tim is taking it relatively easy this year performing a week-long run of comic play Freeze! which he co-wrote and stars in with Tom Basden.

Tim Key

So what is it about Edinburgh that keeps them coming back year after year? Mark explains: “It is only in Edinburgh that you can get this type of audience and it is the best place to get a large audience. I keep on thinking ‘next year I’ll stay at home’ but I’ve been here every year since 2000.

“I’m enjoying playing the Pleasance Grand this year. For the first couple of nights I was finding it hard to adjust to the size of the venue but since then it’s gone well.”

Alex chips in: “I started working on Wordwatching three years ago in 2005 and I am already working on a show for 2010 about golf. Next year I think I might have a year off though. I always plan well ahead with my shows because they tend to take a lot of work.”

Despite the talk of staying away, no doubt partly due to the torrid weather suffered by Edinburgh this August, hopefully all three will be back next year for We Need Answers 2009. The quiz show is fast becoming a Fringe tradition and has already spawning copycats such as Comedy Countdown.
As Tim puts it: “It really is an exceptionally drunken show and the most unpretentious show on the Fringe. I really like the questions we get to ask and it’s a really good chance to see Mark drunk on stage.”

David Hepburn

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We Need Answers is on at the Pleasance Theatre at 00.15 until 17 August 2008 To get an iea as to how the whole thing works, check out the clip below:

FRINGE REVIEW: Brendon Burns

Fuck You I’m Brendon Fucking Burns (Again) Part VI

Brendon Burns takes to the stage dressed as Conan the Barbarian with a scantily-clad dancer on each arm. Why? “Because I fucking can”, he screams. And there’s the whole show in a sentence. After winning the if.comeddies prize last year, he has carte blanche to do whatever he wants in one of the most sought-after venues in Edinburgh. For a comedian of Burns’ stature this should mean an incendiary show filled with jaw-dropping moments. A chance to play to hundreds of people who had never heard of him before last year’s critical acceptance and show them how good he can be.

But he blows it. He’s been touring his stunning 2007 show for the last 12 months and seems to be painfully underprepared for this year’s Fringe. A fact he seems to tacitly admit to in referring to film directors and other former heroes who have had breakthrough success before delivering lazy follow-ups. His material – Arnold Schwarzenegger, the dubious parentage of Prince Harry, paedophiles, the defining characteristics of Aussies and Kiwis – feels like it could be a decade old. His only concession to contemporary topics is riffs on the Fringe box office fiasco and Michael Barrymore – two subjects which will be covered in depth, and probably to better effect, by a large number of stand-ups at this Fringe.

Sure, his delivery is still great and there are lots of laughs but it just seems like lazy humour from a man who, in recent years, has taken agonisingly personal soul-searching comedy to a new level. Two years ago he was telling us how he was dragged to a mental asylum after having an enormous breakdown, this year he’s telling us how amusing Canadians can be. The difference is stark.

Those who have never seen him before will enjoy the hour while wondering how he could receive the ultimate comedy crown last year. Diehard fans will leave feeling depressed that their beloved Burnsy has finally seemingly given in to the corporate world of easy observational comedy.

David Hepburn

Brendon Burns is playing the George Street Assembly Rooms at 8.55pm until August 24.

FRINGE REVIEW: Ivan Brackenbury’s Hospital Radio Christmas Show

Tom Binns, costar of the much-missed legendary late-night sports show ‘Under The Moon’, hit the jackpot last year with his Ivan Brackenbury character – a feckless hospital radio DJ. The basic premise behind the show is simply to dedicate hugely inappropriate songs to patients suffering from different ailments. Some seem obvious (Sit Down, by James, for a man with piles) but others are inspired (A Little Patience, by Take That, for a doctor specialising in dwarfism – gettit?).

This could wear pretty thin over an hour, but Binns’s character is so well-rounded and enjoyable to watch that the time flies by. While the show is similar to last year’s if.comeddies nominated set in structure, the jokes are all new and a number of ‘wacky wind-ups’ are used to vary the pace. A plot, of sorts, involving Brackenbury’s boss is also introduced to add further interest for the audience. The Christmas theme is also welcome, opening up a whole new range of possibilities for the character. There are even free crackers.

For sheer number of laughs-per-minute this show is a real winner, although it’s hard to see where Brackenbury can go next. Perhaps an Alan Partridge-style reinvention awaits us next year? Here’s hoping.

David Hepburn

Ivan Brackenbury will be appearing at the Pleasance Courtyard at 4.45pm until August 25.

FRINGE REVIEW: Nina Conti

Evolution

Nina Conti and her puppet monkey, known simply as Monk, have been regular visitors to the Fringe since 2002, seemingly single-handedly bringing the art of ventriloquism back to centre-stage in Edinburgh. This year their show involves a (very) loose plot where Nina attemps to find out how evolution has created Monk - a talking monkey who she believes could be ‘the missing link’. Monk is having none of it, constantly pointing out to Nina that the entire audience are well aware that he is only given life by the act of Nina putting her hand up his most delicate orifice. The language is utterly filthy with Monk, as ever, saying all the things that Nina herself can only bring herself to think.

The difficulty comes when they stray from the tried-and-tested formula of Nina acting pretty and innocent while Monk makes like a small, furry, Bernard Manning. The weakest segment is when Nina and Monk decide to go their separate ways. The plot follows their individual solo careers but falls flat and loses the audience with too much use of the dreaded powerpoint presentation and prolongued costume changes.

A guest appearance by Tom Conti, Nina’s famous actor father, soon livens things up again and, while slightly confused, it showcases all that is great about Nina’s amazing abilities as a ventriloquist. The finale is wonderful but ultimately lacks the necessary build-up to truly bring the house down. It’s an entertaining enough show but fails to reach the heights of previous years.

David Hepburn

Nina Conti will be appearing at the Pleasance Courtyard at 8.25pm until August 25

FRINGE REVIEW: Pappy’s Fun Club

Funergy

Just two years ago Pappy’s Fun Club were playing the Free Fringe with a 10am slot in a wee bar on Edinburgh’s Royal Mile. A year later they were the surprise package of the 2007 Fringe, nominated for the if.comeddies award, and catapaulted into the big-time. Their reward is a spot at the Pleasance Cabaret Bar and they do not disappoint.

The Fun Club, made up of Ben (Giggly Pappy), Brendan (Grinning Pappy), Matthew (Geeky Pappy) and Tom (Chubby Pappy), are on a quest to save the world. Their secretive benefactor, the eponymous Pappy, wants them to be greener and so they set out to resolve the world’s energy crisis using Funergy. If only their Funergy machine actually worked, then the power they produce would light the whole of Edinburgh throughout the month of August. Their sketches range from the knowingly groan-inducing (“not strong”, admits Matthew at one point), to the genius. There are owls and whales, fights between cities, stuntmen, songs and more running gags than you’ll find anywhere outside an Eddie Izzard set. This is all delivered with costumes seemingly made out of whatever they could find in their kitchen cupboards and a sense of infectious glee.

It’s all fantastically silly and often just feels like a few friends tooling around trying to make each other laugh. This is where the Pappy’s quartet really rise about the run of the mill sketch act – it takes enormous intelligence and talent to deliver a show which feels so anarchic but which never overflows into self indulgence.

If you don’t leave this show with an enormous smile on your face (and a free badge) you should really stop going to see comedy and find something else to do with your time.

David Hepburn

Pappy’s Fun will be appearing at the Pleasance Courtyard at 6.40pm until August 25.

FRINGE REVIEW: Stewart Lee

Scrambled Egg

Stewart Lee returns for what seems like his 145th Edinburgh show with a ‘work in progress’. Likely to be a different show every night, Lee is showcasing old and new material which he intends to use for an upcoming television project. Because of the format it’s impossible to say what will come up on any given night, but with this old-hand there is always the guarantee of seeing a stand-up who is completely at ease with his material and who promises to have the audience eating out of his hand.

His trademark delivery is slow, considered and uses repetition to dramatic comedic effect – especially, on this night, when he reprises his ‘Del Boy falling through the bar’ routine from last year’s 41st Best Stand Up Ever show. A deconstruction of a record sleeve by a black American comic seems pretty likely to be on the bill throughout the Fringe and builds up beautifully to devastating comedic effect. Ever self-deprecating, Lee takes time to rail against himself as he ventures into well-worn “lazy” observations on Travelodge hotels. Other highlights include a self-penned addition to the modern phenomenon of tragedy literature and definitive material on the much-publicised Fringe box office problems which should make other comics forget about even trying to cover the subject.

The only problem is that going to see any other comedy performer after the mighty Lee feels like switching over to EastEnders after watching a Dennis Potter drama. Simply one of the most mesmerising comedians working today.

David Hepburn

Stewart Lee is appearing at the Stand Comedy Club at 7.45pm until August 24

FRINGE REVIEW: Andy White

I Think Therefore I Joke

It’s comforting to think that these days, with the credit cruch upon us, there is still such a thing as a bargain at the Fringe. The big venues may have their preview tickets and two-for-one deals but there are hundreds of completely free shows for the frugally-minded to take advantage of in the pubs and basements of Scotland’s capital during the month of August. Many are, quite frankly, rubbish, but there’s always the chance that you might find a comedy gem that you can brag to your friends about ‘discovering’ in years to come – Andy White could well be such a gem.

The Brummie stand-up has put together an immaculately constructed routine based on a number of philosophers – not a subject which automatically gets your funny-bone working overtime. It’s clever stuff but, any time it seems to be getting a little too cerebral, White is quick to reward the audience with a sharp line or stream of gags. One particularly strong section will make it hard for you to take Chris Rock seriously ever again. Some parts fall a little flat, but he’s confident enough in his material to be unhurried and unafraid to lay the groundwork for big laughs further on down the line.

This is likely to be the only show in Edinburgh where you can have an hour of entertainment while learning about the philosophical theories of, among others, Plato, Socrates, Kant and Descartes. And, if he finishes a little early, White also does a mean Tom Jones tribute!

David Hepburn

Andy White is appearing at the Argyl at 7.05pm until August 25.

FRINGE REVIEW: Russell Kane

Gaping Flaws

Russell Kane is happy to admit he has flaws – lots of them. In fact, he positively revels in them and thinks they are what makes him who he is. He spurns the smooth delivery of American comedians and, thanks to his computer being stolen, can’t even give a slick powerpoint presentation – the replacement is ingenious and gives a whole new slant on ‘interactive displays’.

What he does have is a cracking idea for a show – looking at why British people are uncomfortable with the idea of perfection. We brag about how unhealthy we are, drink to excess and would far rather marry the girl next door instead of a flawless supermodel.

Kane’s delivery is spot-on and his set is packed with the sort of personal material that fools the audience into thinking they are just sitting in the pub with a particularly funny friend. The parts of the show about his family are both hilarious and touching, in particular a section on his determinedly working-class unreconstructed father who has only ever cried twice in his life – when his mother died and when his favourite currry house closed. Any doubts that he is exaggerating for comic effect are scotched when he challenges the audience members to meet with his mother after the show to have the stories confirmed.

The impeccable structure of this thematic show, which includes some inspired ad-libbing, is reminiscent of the glory days of Chris Addison and must be a leading contendor for this year’s if.comeddies award. Best make sure you get a ticket before the nominations are announced.

David Hepburn

Russell Kane is appearing at the Pleasance Courtyard at 8pm until August 25

DVD: Spitting Image - The Second Series

Following on from the success of the first DVD, the second series of the eighties latex-based satirical comedy that was Spitting Image gets released.

Consisting of eleven episodes, virtually uncut from the original broadcast, the series carries on in much the same vein as the first series, taking sharp pot-shots at politicians, celebrities and musicians of the day using grosteque puppet caricatures of the same. Much as before, the series blends surreal songs and sketches with political commentary, the savage wit aiming barbs at such luminaries as Margaret Thatcher, Ronald Reagan and that Spitting Image stalwart, Prince Charles.

Unfortunately, much like the first series, while there is little to doubt the quality of the writing, it hasn’t aged well. Although many of the characters in the series are still well known, some of the lesser known faces are lost to the mists of time and as a result, jokes which played well in the 1980s now seem stunted or contrived. Despite this, good satire is fast becoming a dead art form these days and modern day attempts to reinvent the show with CGI have bombed worse than a Big Brother contestant’s career.

As a history lesson on how it should be done, you can’t go wrong with this.

Spitting Image - The Complete Second Series is available now. Click here to get all nostalgic for satire.

CD: Todd Barry – From Heaven

Albums based around stand-up comedy routines are a tricky thing to get right. Recorded in a studio without the benefit of an audience, they can feel contrived and stuffy with the comic often unaware as to whether the material is working or not. At the other end of the spectrum, if they are recorded in front of a live audience, there’s often a sense that you’re missing out on something visual that the raucous laughter just can’t compensate for. Sometimes the biggest laughs on the CD are caused by elements that are simply not relayed well through your speakers.

Released in the UK to coincide with his recent London dates, Todd Barry’s third live CD, From Heaven, falls into the latter category. Recorded in, of all places, a Chinese restaurant (well, can you think of a better place to record a live comedy CD?), Todd Barry delivers his American deadpan style effortlessly, leading the audience carefully from out-and-out gag to humorous musing like some kind of whimsical Pied Piper. It’s clear from this recording that Todd has spent years perfecting his material and stand up style. His second-perfect timing and handling of the audience is evident in spades, and you find yourself listening to the album with a desire to be in the venue with the audience rather than listening to it from the comfort of home (or your nearest available Tube seat during rush hour).

If this album does one thing, it highlights a gap in the comedy market in the UK. In America, any remotely successful stand-up is be signed up to a minor record label and releases their stand-up material whenever they can, with a hope of getting more coverage and gigs. This was how acts like David Cross, Chris Rock and Bill Hicks got noticed and built a faithful underground fanbase. In Britain though, there is a bizarre and worrying lack of this practice, with often the only way to hear a particular act is by attending a live gig, watching dodgy footage of the stand-up on YouTube or buying a CD taken from the audio of a live DVD (the latter simply exacerbating the problem mentioned above since now you know for sure that there’s something visual you’re patently missing out on). Perhaps it’s time that some labels in the UK woke up and started to look into professionally recording stand-ups in their natural habitat, especially with Edinburgh just around the corner. Until then, I guess we’ll just have to do with Americans like Todd filling up the market. Come to think of it, that’s not such a bad thing after all.

Todd Barry - From Heaven is available now. Click here to buy the CD or click here to visit his website