Review: Simply hands down funny as Pub Landlord talks politics

It’s a sell-out. Of course it’s a sell-out. There is only one Guvnor and Al Murray is it.

He’s just weeks away from standing for Parliament in the constituency of Thanet in Kent, and the great man is in search of a manifesto.

He has his special advisers spread across the first couple of rows, but it’s the audience at large from whom he wants to extract ideas on the burning issues of the day.

Whatever else it is, One Man, One Guvnor is a master class in how to spit-roast an audience, as his pub landlord sways across the stage, glass in hand, hurling abuse while punctuating the one-liners with a cacophony of chirrups, groans and raspberries.

I’ve never seen the words I Love You given a more physical and outrageous spin.

There’s nothing new in all of this. Al’s been filling halls and tweaking liberal sensibilities with his saloon bar monster for more than a decade.

But the fragmentation in British politics and the rise of UKIP has given the character a new relevance.

Added to that, it’s just funny. Can’t wait for the television sound bites.

Rating 9/10

By Peter Walters