Review: Russell at the Lyric Theatre in London
Posted in review, standup on May 16th, 2012 by starleighFrom London’s Evening Standard:
“Nice here, innit.” Russell Brand’s first London show since his divorce from Katy Perry found him in high spirits and as playful as ever. He had no sooner walked onstage than he had stepped off it into the audience, asking for the lights to be turned on so that he could assess his female fans: “I’m single now, it matters,” he chuckled seductively.
This gig was a work-in-progress, but that did not stop it from selling out within an hour. Nor did that stop it from being hilarious in parts. The charismatic bearded star was dressed down in plain grey trousers and T-shirt, but there was nothing grey about his patter. He colourfully discussed allegations about John Travolta, teasingly mocked the Lyric’s grubby set for their current production Three Kingdoms and, most fruitfully, re-enacted his recent talk about drugs in front of the Home Affairs Select Committee, revealing that Noel Gallagher said his cowboy-and-leather look made him resemble “WWF wrestler The Undertaker”.
What Brand did not do, however, was joke about his marriage. Though he did say that his cat Morrissey seems happier now it is just the two of them again. In other news he is chums with Tom Cruise following their appearance together in the movie Rock of Ages and he is currently making a Comic Relief documentary about the perils of addiction following the death of his friend Amy Winehouse, who he described, affectionately, as a “poor cow”.
Most of all Brand was his trademark fascinating mass of contradictions, a witty Oscar Wilde-quoting thinker offering intimate sex tips despite his mother being in the audience. Having bemoaned the cultural subjugation of women in society he said goodbye and offered to sign women’s breasts in the bar. Welcome back Russell.
