At the end of his last show we see Frankie Monroe climb into hell through a suitcase. His deal with the devil has expired and the Devil has come to claim him.
In this show we find Monroe taking the helm of Hell’s entertainment department as he tries to escape the clutches of Lucifer to return to his beloved Rotherham and the Misty Moon social club, which he has been forced to leave behind.
Billed as “Yorkshire’s biggest bastard” Kent-Walters gets to business “terrorising” his audience. Very early on it’s not hard to see that behind the grotesque mask of sudocrem, an over large suit and deep gravelly tones, there lies a very sweet man with the prodding humour of a court jester. Everything he does with switched up to maximum silly and it is a joy to behold.
As with all comedy success stories, Kent-Walters is no overnight success. He’s been in the comedy trenches for a decade plus and he uses all of his experience here to bring the jarring, yet somehow loveable, character to life.
More than the devil himself, Monroe’s nemesis here is the Vegas Dave; a gentrifying usurper who is ruining his Misty Moon club with pints of cream and other fancy things and charging a fortune to boot. Worst of all though, he’s from Lancashire!
More could be done by Kent-Walters in the embodiment of Dave Vegas to differentiate him from Frankie Monroe but the performance as a whole is a masterclass in character comedy.
Laughs run freely throughout the night. In particular the musical numbers bring joy, especially “Egg in a Bag”. The set pieces with audience interaction are always a delight, even if you get the feeling some people in the room are rather bemused as to what is going on. This all adds to the charm of the show.
Games such as “Wine or brine” or the introduction of the gammon hammer all add to the heightened glee of the performance. The return of Monroe’s weather-beaten ventriloquist puppet, Muck Little Pup, brings plenty of guffaws to the room too. Being in Monroe’s presence is to be taken away from all everyday worries. It’s complete escapism at its best.
How or will Monroe get away from the claws of hell to save the Misty Moon is a mere side story in amongst the glory that is spending time with the bonkers nature of Frankie Monroe. It is such a joyful good fun time.
Kent-Walters is at the vanguard of the new wave of character comedians. Along with the likes of Ellen Turnill Montoya’s Mr Handsome and Simon Topping’s Leslie Bloom they bring an exciting and thrilling new element to the current comedy scene and long may they continue.
Reviewed on 3rd June.
