Have you ever imagined what Rupert Murdoch might look like while having sex? I’m afraid that is one of the things I now can’t get out of my head after seeing Tom Ballard’s knockout show at the Monkey Barrel. And frankly I’m not sure I’m going to recover anytime soon.
Oh, this is so good. Political, nasty, angry (verging at times on righteous fury) and surprisingly moving. It’s also the best example of a comedian who knows that great comedy is as much about performance as it is about punchlines (and on this showing he is maxing out on both).
This is Ballard’s first time at the Fringe for a few years and it feels like he’s making up for lost time. There’s a giddy energy and a real hunger to his work here, whether he’s showing off his belly (NB: he does this a lot), boasting about his gay gymnast boyfriend or impersonating Murdoch when he’s … Well, you’ve already got that image in your head now and I don’t want to scar you any more than you already are.
And yes it’s political. Ballard riffs on climate change, has a square go at the world’s billionaires and reminds us of the horror that is the modern old person’s care home. But in doing so he reminds us that you can mine humour from anything. It’s a form of comedy socialism, you might say.
At the heart of the show is a comparison between the late Queen and his own recently deceased gran (who did manage to make it to her centenary before passing). One of them doesn’t come out of it well. Can you guess?
To be fair, if you’re a royalist then, frankly, this isn’t the show for you. But anger is an energy and here it is comic fuel for a comedian who motors through this show in fifth gear. The result is joyous.
Tom Ballard: It Is I, Monkey Barrel 1, until August 27 (except August 14)
