STAND-UP COMEDY REVIEW: Andy Parsons: Healing The Nation - The Lowry Theatre, Salford.

I have been a fan of Andy Parsons since his first tentative entry into the panel of 'Mock The Week' for the show's second episode in June 2005. It has taken me until now to see him live. It has taken him almost as long to play Salford's Lowry Theatre as part of his current tour! His first two bookings having had to be postponed due to the you-know-what! In fact, Parsons himself admits that this tour, which started in Autumn 2019, is perhaps going to hold the world record for the longest ever tour, and it still might never be completed!

Way back in 2019, many things were dividing the nation; of course Brexit was top of the list, but there was also climate change, Donald Trump, sexual orientation, and badgers.. yes, badgers! And so Parsons thought a tour which was intented to bring people together and 'heal' the nation would work nicely... and then the C-word happened! And perhaps his tour title is just as apt now as ever, as the coronavirus and Johnson's handling of the situation has divided our country like nothing ever has - not even Brexit. And in our covid times we need the power of laughter and a couple of hours' diversion like we haven't needed since 1945.

There's no point in hiding it, but we were a tough audience to crack this evening. It was a hard gig for Parsons. Not only is he still trying to find his stride again - like all of us, we are still feeling uncertain in our work, despite being totally capable and confident... something unnamable has knocked us all a little off kilter - but we weren't for letting ourselves go and toying with him as much as he would have liked us to. We were being very 'British' and sitting back looking up at the stage saying, "Go on then, entertain us.. that's what you're being paid for!"

Parsons chatted aimiably in his own unique style, the comedy coming just as much through the way he says things as what he says. He covered subjects such as coping through isolation, home-schooling, parenting, and other tasks during the lockdowns; the NHS, pensions, Richard Branson, David Attenborough, Boris Johnson, and badgers.... yes, badgers!

Parsons is never one to let a good ad-lib go unnoticed, and despite the heckles being very few and far between, he still managed to wring every inch of humour out of those he did receive. He is a consummate comedian and obviously loves standing on stage and entertaining; something he has been doing since his student days with comedy partner Henry Naylor. And his heartfelt message from this tour, as he is still trying to bring a separated nation together again, is, "look for the small positives in the world and our situations". When a check-out operator can't scan an item from the trolley, and simply passes it through by saying "bip" himself, we know everything will be well! 

Reviewer - Matthew Dougall
on - 27.11.21