Yesterday we three wearily returned from the Edinurgh Fringe Festival, drained but delighted. Expect an overview of the festival shortly, but for the time being I wish to share with you a personal highlight.
Back in 2001 I witnessed a sight so strange my mind couldn’t process it. It excited me mentally, physically and maybe even sexually. It was a live performance of Simon Munnery’s show ‘Attention Scum,’ and I was left fascinated ever since.
This year, 2011, we ventured to the festival to watch the shows and do some research, along the way encountering a vision of Jesus and accidentally coming on to an actor (again, more on that later). One of the shows we saw was Simon Munnery.
He made his entrance wearing a bubble blowing top hat, urging everyone to clap hands and sing a song with him. We were sitting right at the front (as we did with Stewart Lee, more later) and he gave Steve in our group a picture of an airship to hold up for the audience. How can you not love him already?
What followed was a mixture of personal comedy, silly songs and character monologues, my favourite being his speech as Sherlock Holmes revealing the less than impressive truth behind his status as great detective and man of science. His grasp of the peculiarity of Victorian vernacular left me jealous.
His outlook on life is very sweet and infectious, and when I cornered him afterwards brandishing one of our business cards he seemed genuinely pleased. All in all, I’d like to lick his eye and give him a cuddle all at the same time. Go see him!
Madeleine Swann 