The award winning sketch group select their personal festival highlights

comedy

It Seemed Funny in Edinburgh
The Headless Chickens
Cutting-edge sketch comedy from the winners of last year’s Newest Newcomer award.

“No jokes as such, but a lot of manic running around and shouting.” The Gardening Times.

events

Lark in the Park
Day-long, joyless shindig in Preston Park, featuring ethnic music, stalls, face-painting, parades, face-painting, performance art, stilt-walking and face-painting, climaxing with a fireworks display no-one will remember, costing hundreds of thousands of pounds of council money.

“Ow! This paint stings!” A small child.

literature

Let’s Talk Turkey
John Cale and Bernard Matthews
An intimate night of words, music and chat from the Welsh avant garde instrumentalist and the Norfolk processed meat tycoon.

“Bootiful.” Spectator.

music

See-Saw Sing-Snore
40 menopausal women in black smocks performing interminable, colourless arrangements of African Tribal Songs.

“A bit boring, really.” Financial Times.

children’s

Arsole the Clown
Japes aplenty for children of all ages as the red-nosed funster gets into all manner of scrapes. Thrill to his hilarious antics on his caper-filled journey all the way from the divorce courts, through a cocaine and alcohol fuelled lost weekend and straight into the Priory.

“The most profane, filth-filled 45 minutes I have ever seen.” Pier Paolo Passolini

dance

La Fuerza Del Amor
El Trion Del Simbiotico
Acclaimed Spanish company performs contemporary, disturbing tableaux based on incidents in the life of Federico Garcia Lorca. To the music of Huey Lewis & The News.

“Unwatchable.” The Times.

theatre

Stryjenka od Karl (Charley’s Aunt)
The Kwiakowski Theatre of Gdansk
Challenging physical theatre from one of the world’s leading companies in this new adaptation of Brandon Thomas’ evergreen farce. With Danish subtitles.

“I wouldn’t wipe my arse on this.” Sheridan Morley.

real

The Return of the Ornate Johnsons
Brand new sketch fun from the award-winning w**kers.

“The best sketch group since Monty Python.” The Guardian

Udder Place, 24–26 Aug, times vary, £12.00 (£10.00), fpp 21

The October Revolutions
The Ornate Johnsons Present...
Brian Mitchell’s new anti-romantic comedy of love, grief and The Blue Peter Garden. Directed by Ross Gurney-Randall.

“Wonderful. Funny, sad and touching”. Aletta Collins

Sallis Benney Theatre, 18 May, 8:00pm (9:50pm), £8.00 (£6.00), fpp 45

WARNING: All these shows exist in the minds of those Ornate Johnsons, it’s possible only two exist in the real world