Fringe Favorites 2009: Go! Go! Go! It's Caroline Mabey's Go Go Go Coffee Show...

I first saw Caroline Mabey at Edinburgh last year as part of The GCSE Revision Show, a great three hander along with Miriam Elia, and Seann Walsh. She also filled in a few of the Up the Arts slots that were on after us last year as her alter ego Helen Heels 'the land lady of the stars' of Sandy Hole guest house. As you can imagine one tires of the endless questions and cheap gags of some generic stand ups in ole Edinburgh so it's a great breath of fresh air to see something like Mabey's Go Go Go Coffee Show. Where some acts grumble about their time slot, Mabey has expertly tailored the show for 1.30pm and her enthusiasm really coheres the audience of various ages with animated clips, games, great jokes and silly hats. Who wants to be the harbour master? She has the sort of nervous energy combiend with great delivery and jokes that excellently teeter on the line between faux innocence and deliberately perverse that of course young Jimmny would enjoy. When some shamble around for 40 minutes mumbling guff and deludely call it a 'show', Mabey's is the real deal an hour you want to see again a few times, and if you are in Edinburgh there isn't much time! (it's not an nuclear attack or anything, it's just the festival will be over, the city will not cease to exist as the London press would have it: 'Edinburgh's nearly over!!!'.

Thankfully she is getting some good notices, a mention in the Guardian Guide, Bruce Dessau's Blog ("Imagine the slightly deranged offspring of a menage a trois between between Vic Reeves, Harry Hill and Floella Benjamin and you are getting there". ) Steve Bennett at Chortle. ("It’s unlikely you’ll find a show that mixes the unhinged and the fun in quite the same way, sending you out into the day with a satisfied smile on your face")

Check out her site here