A. L. Kennedy : Feel the Love
A L Kennedy is in the words business but going from acclaimed novelist to stand up comedienne is a huge gulf to cross. She is witty, obviously intelligent and always interesting, but she is not out and out belly laugh funny. Word abuse is the loose theme of her set and she covers a wide list of subjects including advertising, the smear test and the perils of air travel. She is actually at her funniest and most naturally animated when she engages with the audience, and takes a chance departing from her set routine. An hour is a long time to retain an audience’s full attention – more variety and surprises are needed to completely grab the audience. When I saw her, she was packed out but whether this would be so if she were billed as Alison Kennedy and not A L Kennedy I am not so sure. ***