Meryl O’Rourke – Bad Mother

It is said that humour comes from truth, and there can’t be anything more truthful than family relations. Meryl O’Rourke’s show roots out gems from her unusual family background, her Jewish mother arriving in London as a refugee from Hitler’s persecution, her father’s Irish Catholic rebellion against his own upbringing, and Meryl’s own quirky pearls of wisdom she would like to pass on to her own daughter. It’s true, and it’s so well crafted it’s also very funny. Tightly written, deftly performed, intimate in its storytelling and packed with punchlines, this pseudo-celeb stalking celebration of unorthodox familial love is heartwarming without being at all sappy.

Laughing Horse@Caroline of Brunswick, 10 May 2012

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