Comedy: Leave your ‘X’

With General Election fever reaching its height, be tempted by satire

Many years ago ITV’s ‘Spitting Image’ was credited with contributing to the toppling of Thatcher’s government. After much mocking, puppets depicting the PM herself as mannish and members of her Cabinet as everything from a Tarzan to a snail, confidence in the ‘powers’ that be was diminishing. Mind you, confidence in the Opposition wasn’t too great either, with Neil Kinnock’s buffoonish depiction a lot more ‘happy clappy’ than the current masters of spin representing the Labour party. Suffice to say, satire bites with sharp teeth, and if you’d like perspectives that don’t pull their punches whose side they’re on, then investigate the collection of satirists currently in town and poking all the fun that is to be had at The Man.

We are lucky enough to have a whole array of talented comics in town this week, picking up the Fool’s role of picking holes in the Authority using song, sketch and stand-up. And one even uses the medium of cocktail-making! The Treason Show at the Rialto Theatre is running an election special 6–9 May, with the performance on the night of the election itself including running coverage, live screening, and sketches written on the day – and some even completed on the night itself. With a late license and a themed bar, this is one election party you can bank on – even if there isn’t a result you can feel the same way about.

Musical comedy from Jonny And The Baptists, with their ‘Rock The Vote’ show, is at Komedia on Tuesday night. They’ve already had run-ins with UKIP on their last tour and shouldn’t be afraid to make the politicians flinch.

Over at the Brighton Spiegeltent the cabaret darlings Bourgeois & Maurice can be found on Saturday with a special General Election show, with the promise that it will be written in its entirety in the 48 hours that follow the results. Expect sequins and disillusionment.
Plus pretty much any solo stand-up spot this week. In any show. It’s the General Election and it could be anybody’s country to rule. And the election is this week. If you don’t talk about it there’ll be more elephants in the room than ‘Disney’s Fantasia’ ever conjured up!
www.brightonfringe.org