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.