John Meagher talks fast. Words rattle out of him in his Northern Irish accent at double speed. If double speed was in a hurry. It’s difficult to imagine that in terms of words per show there is better value for money at the whole of the Fringe this August.
And what words. This Fringe debut is a joy of a show. You just don’t have time to appreciate the craft that has gone into it because you’re just busy keeping up.That’s when you’re not laughing. It was a sellout at the Dublin Fringe. It deserves to be in Edinburgh too.
The title, Big Year, is slightly underselling it. In the space of an hour Meagher pretty much tells us his life story; from idyllic life on an Irish island to being transplanted to Belfast as a kid at the height of the Troubles, before moving to England as an adult, and falling for an Arab woman. It’s a show about Anglo-Irish relations, class, the inability of men to deal with their feelings and what to do if you are ever interrogated by the police. And, yes, it is also a love story.
Meagher mines his fury with the world for comic fuel. In this case anger really is an energy. But the emotional palette does stretch beyond that
Maybe in the concentrated time of a Fringe show the more surreal, fanciful moments here are a little rushed through and rushed past. No doubt this is a show that would breathe (“in for five, hold for five, out for five,” as Meagher’s father recommends during an unorthodox, very Belfast, parental lesson) more easily over 90 minutes.
But for laughs, storytelling nous and just all-round pleasure Big Year will leave you breathless. In the best way.
John Meagher: Big Year, Gilded Balloon Patter House (Blether), 4.20pm, until August 2
https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/john-meagher-big-year
Teddy Jamieson
