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The greatest show and other bromances: Adam Riches and John Kearns ARE Ball and Boe @sohotheatre

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Alfie Boe and Michael Ball seem to be a bit of a joke act anyway. Their endless interpretations of popular songs (also known as covers) and their double-act bromance make them quintessential crossover artists where popular music meets opera and Broadway. And a perilous choice for the discerning listener. It’s not that they aren’t talented musicians and performers in their own right. Still, their musical choices are always safe, predictable and less than their potential. But every country deserves to have a pair of self-described national treasures that can tour the local arenas and give people a good time for the bargain price of £175 a seat.  And so the concept of Adam Riches and John Kearns - two world-famous from the Edinburgh Fringe comedians taking on this bromance seems like a curious choice for a Christmas musical fare. One can only hope that over the fourteen nights, it is playing at the Soho Theatre that the show evolves into something more substantial than a series of po...

Christmas in Hull: FCUK’D @BunkertheatreUK

FCUK’D at The Bunker is a an alternative Christmas theatre experience about life on the margins of British life.

A teenage boy kidnaps his little brother and they run away. Escaping their grim council flat, daily run-ins with the authorities and in search of something better than this in the lead up to Christmas.

Estimates put it at around 100,000 children run away from home every year. This piece unpacks some of the reasons why. Dad is gone. Mum is either drinking or comatose. Nobody cares about them and so they’re going to have some fun. They steal crisps from the supermarket. They steal a car. And then they burn it for warmth.

Written and directed by Niall Ransome, the story is told in verse. Ransome took inspiration from his experiences growing up in Hull.



It’s delivered convincingly by Will Mytum as the troubled youth. He engages you through it’s short duration. Pacing about the stage, eyeing the audience, brining to life this tale about never getting a break.

The stage is a square of astroturf that resembles some neglected games area on a council estate. Leaves are piled in corners and a faulty street lamp partially lights the way. The perfect setting for trouble to emerge from the shadows.

Running at under an hour its a compelling alternative Christmas tale about the great British divide. Or

FCUK’D concludes at The Bunker from 27 to 30 December

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Photos by Andrea Lambis

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