Tom McDonnell review

Tom McDonnell takes to the stage with a kind of strung out silence and awkwardness that he seems to often crave. There is no applause until, well, he reminds the audience that it is generally traditional at the top of a show, which breaks the ice a little.

He, and his guest James Sherwood are both gifted musicians, and both clearly have it in them to pen an amusing song to top this. McDonnell's song Dr Jones is particularly funny once it dawns on an audience the subject of said ditty, and even his tribute to Barack Obama doesn't feel as dated as it now could. He has a knack of pausing and creating nervous laughter, or throwing in a cynical look, resulting in a more cleverly honed piece, rather than just a man, singing a joke.

In some ways, his cynicism and sarcasm affect the act in the wrong way - he is, after all, playing to a lunchtime crowd, who aren't necessarily looking for anything too caustic. However, the majority of the time, it works, and on introducing Sherwood, it feels as if the audience are keen for more in the way of musical whimsy.

Sherwood arrives with the most original bagpipe related joke I have heard at the Fringe in a very long time, and from here, he goes into a similar style as McDonnell - the two complement each other throughout the course of the show, each with the most fascinating array of facial expressions and pauses, and evidently, they enjoy each other's work - both as willing audience for the other.

With a nice capability for audience interaction, and odd choices of times when it should be used (for comic effect), and a humble yet cynical attitude, the show is an enjoyable hour, and it feels as though McDonnell won't be charging nothing for long.

---

Tom McDonnell's Musical Ministry Of Comedy listing