Comedy / Reviews
Review: Sean Hughes, Bristol Old Vic
Sean Hughes is good company for his latest show Mumbo Jumbo – named after the nonsense in your head that contradicts the good sense and tells you to have another pint or touch a lamppost for good luck.
But in truth this is really a show about being 49: Hughes’ age is bothering him. A lot. The excitement and anticipation of being young has been met only by the disappointment of getting older, a riff he frequently directs at 19-year-old Fiona sitting in the audience.
The first half, ambling through gags about Bristol and contemporary politics, got a mixed reception, although his inventive solutions for Ebola and the Islamic State go down well. Hughes is more warmed up by the time he deals with sport and being Irish, but it definitely feels like the preamble to the tighter second half. We head off to the interval on an amusing three-minute musical, one of a few moments when Hughes offers a song the last laugh.
After the break, though, the energy goes up and we find Hughes in jolly mood, recounting tales of his encounters with Rwandan gorillas, his love-hate relationship with his mum, and getting free stuff. Fans of Hughes will love this chance to find out more about the man.
This being a school night he perhaps didn’t get the usual raucous comedy crowd, but the Old Vic gave him a good welcome, especially for the material about ageing which gathers momentum with a number of callbacks in the second half.
Hughes is the consummate comedy professional, and it’s all there in his act for your delectation: mime, funny voices and some frighteningly good lip synching. Although the dominant pitch is darkly comic, Hughes still manages an uplifting show that is sure to make you chuckle.
Sean Hughes played Bristol Old Vic on Sunday, September 27. For more upcoming comedy gigs, check our Comedy listings.
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