At the height of their fame, the comedy duo Morecambe and Wise commanded an audience of 28million viewers for their 1977 TV Christmas show, so no doubt there’s a multitude of fans out there who will relish the chance to see the bespectacled Eric Morecambe (he died in 1984) brought back to life in this one man tribute show.
The short one – Ernie Wise - is there too, but only in the token form of a ventriloquist’s dummy in a suit which spends most of the time lolling on a plush red sofa as Bob Golding’s Eric whizzes us along the career path of this much-loved and enduring pair, punctuating the surface-skimming narrative with jokes, marriage and the birth of a baby or two.
From a pushy mother and a change of name (from Bartholomew to Morecambe) to a long stint in variety and a slow rise to fame, there‘s nothing here to tarnish fond memories of his dedicated love affair with showbiz. Tim Whitnall’s script tells us little about the man – glossing over his personal life and only creating some much needed tension when Eric tempts fate and keeps on performing even after a second coronary To be fair to Golding, he puts his all into this Edinburgh hit – but it just isn’t funny.
I laughed only once – a line about too much whisky making you see double and act single - and smiled a little more. Not surprising, then, (to me at least) that their playful, rather silly brand of humour flopped in the States.
Still, a standing ovation on press night puts me firmly in the minority – though I doubt this affectionately nostalgic show will have much appeal for those who aren’t already familiar with whatever quality it was that made Morecambe’s forty year partnership with Ernie so popular in its heyday.
Duchess, Catherine Street, WC2B 5LA (
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