THE MAYHEM OF LATE ’N’ LIVE... IN YOUR LIVING ROOM
Greatest Ever Late ‘N’ Live, Episode 1 (www.gildedballoon.co.uk) Verdict: Tamer than the real thing ★★★✩✩
LIKE the Sixties, if you can remember time spent at Late ’n’ Live, the Gilded Balloon’s legendary, and notorious, late-night comedy staple of the Edinburgh Fringe, then you were probably never there.
Anarchic and irreverent, the show is a gladiatorial comedy bear pit in which stand-ups pit their wits and egos against each other, not to mention a generally drunk and unruly crowd.
With Covid-19 having put the kibosh on this year’s festivities, the Gilded Balloon has dug deep into its archives to come up with a Greatest Hits compilations available to watch throughout August.
But how do you go about capturing the buzz generated by a show that became as famous as its participants? Going by the evidence of the first 45-minute episode, with more than a little difficulty. Not that the anthology isn’t good watching. Far from it. There are plenty of top comedy stars on show here, such as John Bishop, Sarah Millican and Dara O’Briain.
But somehow the end result comes across as much tamer than the real thing.
One key thing missing in the debut collection is the sniping of fellow comics from the sidelines trying to derail the concentration of those in the spotlight,
Even the editing seems haphazard. John Bishop crowd surfing is part of Late ’n’ Live folklore but is relegated to the end credit.
More a Good Bits rather than Greatest Ever selection then. But watching it still had me pining for Edinburgh and the real thing. Meanwhile, the Edinburgh International Festival is keeping the creative fires burning with a series of online shows under the umbrella title My Light Shines On.
They include a charming adaptation of The Telephone, Gian Carlo Menotti’s 1947 comedy performed by Scottish Opera.
Updated to the present, it centres on Ben’s attempts to get a word in edgeways to propose to his girlfriend, who can’t tear herself away from her mobile phone.
Finally, of all the Edinburgh Festival events going online, the Book Festival seems most suited to the medium.
This year’s programme can be accessed via the website edbookfest.co.uk.
Many events are available on catch-up, including Hilary Mantel: Inside the head of Thomas Cromwell, an intriguing insight into the author’s craft and methodology.