one4review | On 11, Aug 2017

It’s no surprise that it’s a packed house for News Revue, as this Fringe staple is a guaranteed fun packed fast paced hour.

Any Revue of the news has got a lot to cover this year, from a certain American twitter fan, through election chaos, terror, and various maniacs running their countries – and possibly other people’s. But there were also plenty of smaller stories covered – student teachers, Janet Jackson, Dr Who, and Sturgeon’s continued passion for Scottish Independence.

Songs involved music from ‘Wrecking Ball’ via Grease, Beyonce, S Club 7, Disney films, and Bowie to Gilbert and Sullivan, with the cast of four giving it their all and ensuring the lyrics were still clear even at the very back of the room.

This year’s show, courtesy of the news, was able to give the female cast members – Abigail Carter-Simpson and Elissa Churchill some meaty characters to play, and they grabbed the opportunity with both hands. The male cast members – Howard Grater and Sam Sheldon, of course got their teeth into Trump, BoJo, Corbyn, Macron, Trudeau, and many others.

All in all, this is a great way to spend an hour. The only thing that felt a tiny touch disappointing was that usually News Revue can be relied on to take a fresh take on some of the news stories, and yet it felt that this year they lacked that surprise. Still, go and see it because you’ll be laughing hard enough to let that detail slide.

*****
Reviewed by Gill
Pleasance Courtyard
18.30-19.30
Until 28th (not 15th)