one4review | On 23, Aug 2015

Bruce Fummey has set himself the challenge of covering a thousand years of Scottish history, and being funny about it, in an hour. While he didn’t make it all the way through to the present day in perhaps as much detail as he’d have liked, this was an entertaining and educational set.

Bruce is friendly and confident on stage, never alienating or offending the audience. The show has a gentle political undercurrent, but even when expressing his political opinion, the material never becomes didactic. If you don’t share Bruce’s political leanings, being possessed of a sense of humour and irony will still allow you to enjoy the show.

Previous knowledge of Scottish history will mean you don’t get lost among the multitude of murdered kings which litter the chronology, but if you’re not familiar, then Mr Fummey’s stories and explanations are more than sufficient as guides (and they’re often funny). The show has a good structure, provided in part by the history but also by the development of a couple of recurring themes and a cyclical narrative.

A nice introduction to Scottish history for the uninitiated, a wry look at the stories for the rest.

Reviewed by Laura

Stand in the Square, 17:40