Maeve Higgins
Magnus Betner
Malcolm Hardee
Mandy Knight
Mandy Muden
Marc Lucero
Marc Maron
Marc Wootton
Marcel Lucont
Marcus Brigstocke
Marcus Ryan
Marek Larwood
Margaret Cho
Maria Bamford
Marian Pashley
Marie Vagen
Mark Allen
Mark Cornell
Mark Dolan
Mark Felgate
Mark Gatiss
Mark Hurst
Mark Maier
Mark Nelson
Mark Olver
Mark Restuccia
Mark Simmons
Mark Steel
Mark Stephenson
Mark Thomas
Mark Walker
Mark Watson
Markus Birdman
Marlon Davis
Martha McBrier
Martin Beaumont
Martin Bigpig Mor
Martin Coyote
Martin Davis
Martin Hill
Martin Tapley
Martine Pepper
Marty McLean
Marty Wilson
Mary Bourke
Masai Graham
Mat & Faron
Mat Ewins
Mathew Horne
Matt Blaize
Matt Dyktynski
Matt Grantham
Matt Green
Matt Hollins
Matt Kirshen
Matt Lucas
Matt Price
Matt Reed
Matt Rees
Matt Richardson
Matt Rudge
Matt Tiller
Matt Watts
Matt Welcome
Matthew Hardy
Matthew Highton
Matthew Holness
Matthew Osborn
Matthew Winning
Maureen Langan
Maureen Younger
Max Dickens
Max Dowler
Men In Coats
Men With Bananas
Meryl O'Rourke
Michael Ayers
Michael Fabbri
Michael J Dolan
Michael Legge
Michael McIntyre
Michael Mooney
Michael Redmond
Michael Smiley
Michael Tombs
Michael Winslow
Mick Ferry
Mick McGrath
Mick Miller
Mick Sergeant
Mickey Anderson
Mickey D
Mickey Hutton
Micky Flanagan
Mike Belgrave
Mike Birbiglia
Mike Gunn
Mike Landers
Mike Milligan
Mike Newall
Mike O'Donovan
Mike Wilkinson
Mike Wilmot
Mike Wozniak
Miles Crawford
Miles Jupp
Milton Jones
Miranda Hart
Miriam Elia
Miss London
Mitch Benn
Mitch Fatel
Moonfish Rhumba
Moshe Kasher
Mowten
Mr B The Gentleman Rhymer
Mundo Jazz
Moonfish Rhumba
Supporting Lembit... |
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Jobbing comedians are used to the fact that, generally, comedy-club audiences aren’t there to watch them specifically, but just a generic night of stand-up. But it’s even less flattering to know that the entire crowd have come to see someone else entirely, and care not one jot about your existence. Especially when that someone else is an eccentric MP who’s decided to dabble in comedy. Appearing on the same bill as Lembit Opik has plenty of drawbacks, transforming central London’s delightfully intimate Backstage Comedy Club into a mix of media circus and Commons club. Alongside the cameras and the reviewers, the comics also have to contend with the worst type of comedy audience member: the attention-seeker who thinks himself funnier than the performers. Step forward Stephen Pound, the ebullient Labour MP for Ealing North, walking the line between witty interjection and limelight-hogging. Compere Robert Meakin, an occasional newspaper diarist and clearly a clubbable fellow, played up to the Establishment side of the night, donning a Lib Dem rosette and making light political quips about the celebrity headliner or David Cameron’s poshness – all adding to the atmosphere that this was all about quirky old Lembit having a crack than a more genuine comedy environment. Relative newcomer Tom Goodliffe was first to enter this world. He’s a confident, affable chap, with innate stage presence – even if his slick routine scored few points for originality. Middle-class boys merging the patois of rap with their suburban experiences are a comedy staple these days – and this self-styled ‘hip-hop accountant’ couldn’t make it his own, despite a few nicely corny maths-based puns. Sarcastic comebacks to strangers’ flippant comments about his 6ft 6in height equally produced more smiles than chuckles, as did his production of such unlikely tomes as ‘How To Pull Girls’ from his satchel, inviting inevitable comparisons with Robin Ince’s Book Club that pretty much exhausted the fun you could have with strange literature. But the man has some style, if not much distinction. But he’s a veritable spring of inspiration compared to Tom Williams, who not only did the customary one-liner about the celebrity he’s been compared to, but based most of his short set on it. That’s when he wasn’t mentioning the famous person the compere looked like. Add some confused ‘health and safety’ material about the tealights in the room and lots of long-winded set-ups, and you have a set of no consequence and no laughs. Josh Widdicombe, by contrast, absolutely nailed it. He grabbed the bullish Mr Pound by the horns, and imposed his authority by bantering with a quick wit that couldn’t be countered. The MP’s flippant comments only fuelled him further in a skilful display of spontaneity. Moving on to material, revolving around Madame Tussaud’s and narrowboats, Widdicombe cemented his already warm relationship with the audience with his quirkily appealing material. His playful, original set proved a breath of fresh air, showing that you don’t need tonnes of experience to rise to the occasion if you’re blessed with an easy confidence and a charming, sharp wit. I always want to like musical double act Moonfish Rhumba more than I actually do, given their imposing stage presence and distinctive look – one a vision in polyester in his porn-star moustache and dated fashion sense while his bald sidekick cuts a more sober figure. They create a frisson of anticipation when they take to the stage,.. but a meaninglessly surreal exchange about going to the candy store, conducted in silly voices, dissipates that. They are musically adept, too, with rich, properly-written songs that would stand on their own merit; while they mocked the sultry cabaret chanteuses who seductively tease their audience in the front row by diving in headfirst. The only thing that disappoints is the comedy quotient of their songs, which is surprisingly pedestrian, given how stylish they are in executing it. Finally, just before the main attraction, ventriloquist Nina Conti ran through one of her greatest hits, when her monkey puppet takes over her whole body – a skilfully performed set piece guaranteed to impress and entertain in equal measure. She they introduced her Scottish grandmother – or at least the sponge version thereof – for a silly turn that was enjoyable, if a little gimmicky. The finale was something of a gimmick, too – though one guaranteed to raise the roof – as she employed a ‘human dummy’. She’s not the first ventriloquist to employ this technique – Paul Zerdin certain does a version of it – but is hugely funny and, like everything the charismatic Conti does, exquisitely pulled off. It would prove a hard act to follow – especially if your expertise is in politics rather than comedy… Click here for a review of Lembit Opik’s set |
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Date of live review: Thursday 3rd Jun, '10 | |
Review by Steve Bennett |
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Sunday 9th May, '10- Brighton Freerange |
Like a strange hybrid between Reeves & Mortimer and the Mighty Boosh, Moonfish Rhumba are surreal and unprecictable, fusing well crafted somedy songs with what I can only describe as Tony Clifton-esque performance art. Charles Thomson, April 2011 |
Where can I see Moonfish Rhumba next?
20:30~21:30 - Thursday 4th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Friday 5th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Saturday 6th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Sunday 7th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Monday 8th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Tuesday 9th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Wednesday 10th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Thursday 11th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Friday 12th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Saturday 13th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Sunday 14th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Monday 15th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Tuesday 16th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Thursday 18th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Friday 19th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Saturday 20th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Sunday 21st Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Monday 22nd Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Tuesday 23rd Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Wednesday 24th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Thursday 25th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Friday 26th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Saturday 27th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
20:30~21:30 - Sunday 28th Aug, '11 | |
Venue: | Just The Tonic at The Caves |
Prices: | £5 to £8.50 |
Show: | The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish |
Moonfish Rhumba
Edinburgh Fringe 2009
The Moonfish Rhumba Show
Edinburgh Fringe 2011
The Moonfish Rhumba: The Chronicles Of Moonfish