This sketch writing achieves everything that has come to be expected of the genre, mixing observational with impulsive twists. It uses and abuses characters that are both common and everyday as well as more outrageous figures. Hitler makes an appearance, along with the middle-class Jacobs Creek generation. Behind many of the witty sketches lies a high-minded and well-thought out idea, such as Marx and Engles arguing over copyright laws on Jeremy Kyle. At this Fringe alone I have seen eighteen Jeremy Kyle jokes performed and this was the first one that genuinely made me laugh. It takes on deluded performance artists, disaffected remedial maths students facing impossible questions, and the dispossessed northerners who cant come to terms with the chronic capitalism of the south. Every member of the cast has the ability to produce different and outrageous caricatures with intense energy. They all have the honed ability to deliver material at the right pace. It may not have you hurting with laughter though, and there are periods where the jokes are too subtle in places. But thats a minor quibble. This show now lets me recognise why the Oxford Revue has such a high reputation at the Fringe, with intense energy, unique delivery and great writing.
