High Jinks With The Hamiltons! certainly is a sight to behold. Littering the stage are Union Flags and Saint Andrew’s Crosses - as part of their ‘be nice to the natives policy’, so we’re told - whilst the proceedings are presided over by a huge, projected photograph of our favourite former-politician gleefully stuffing a Christmas turkey. Christine is resplendently clad in salmon-pink pedal pushers and a fuchsia feather boa, while Neil fidgets around nervously, happy to play second-fiddle to his wife’s brisk, jolly hockey-sticks charm. And, as unlikely as it may seem, she is charming: perfectly aware of the mixture of amusement and disbelief which her colourful persona inspires in the general public, she flits around, completely unflappable in her seemingly infinite capacity for self-mockery. If, in the excitement of the Fringe, you find yourself craving your morning fix of daytime television then, by gum, this show is for you. Showcasing a diverse range of Edinburgh’s finest acts, the Hamiltons have brought the chat-show formula to the stage in a way that really works, with magicians, musicians and comics all sitting awkwardly with plastic glasses of Champagne, being interviewed by a surprisingly quick-witted Christine. A pervasive feeling of nervous hysteria infects guests and audience alike. For die-hard fans of the Hamiltons – presumably they exist somewhere – this is a wonderful opportunity to experience first hand the secrets of one of Britain’s most extraordinary couples.Extraordinary indeed: there were moments when I could scarcely believe my eyes and ears. With supreme bravery and the admirable honesty that marks their attitude to life in the public eye, they opened the show with a discussion of how they were once arrested and taken into questioning over an allegation of sexual assault. Brave maybe, but an unquestionably strange choice for a light-hearted comedy show.Unwittingly perhaps, everything they said and did combined to make it as surreal as its title promises it will be, culminating in a finale which was both hilarious and utterly bizarre. Funny for all the wrong reasons, and fun for all the right ones, High Jinks With The Hamiltons! is spectacular in every sense of the word.
