Pull My Goldfinger – The Hen & Chickens Theatre, London

Writer: Carlos Sandin

Wacky, wonderful, and bizarre: it’s 007 as you’ve never seen him. Carlos Sandin’s solo clown reimagining of the beloved British secret agent in a hilarious and brilliant Edinburgh preview.

‘Bond is dead’ proclaims clown performer Sandin off stage, and thus ensues James Bond’s rebirth. The Hen & Chickens Theatre audience is taken back, way back, to Bond in the primitive pre-historic years where Sandin bares it all (in the very literal sense). It sets the tone for the ridiculousness that makes Pull My Goldfinger hilarious and utterly entertaining.

Despite just being Sandin on stage, accompanied by the odd prop and musical instrument, the production has the richness and variety of a multi-million-pound feature film. Car chases, shark tanks, romantic dance routines, iconic recreations from the films; all are encapsulated in a tight 60-minute show.

Thankfully the show is void of the generic James Bond parodies and predictable references that productions like this easily fall victim to. The references that Sandin does include are well used and do not tire within the pastiche of craziness that is this clown show.

It’s chaotic clarinet solos, hastily applied lipstick, full-effort dance routines, on-stage mixology, to name just a few. The result is chaotic and entirely charming.

Sandin is seamless with a cinematic soundtrack and beautifully timed sound effects (credit must also go to the tech operator,Jules Deering). Within this seamlessness however, Sandin retains an ability to improvise and respond to an enthusiastic audience, encouraging them at one point to throw missiles at him, and at others to participate in on-stage gambling As Sandin becomes more unconventional the audience is right there with him.

At times, Sandin’s true undisputed talent as a clown performer is on full show, particularly in his movement. In a truly clown-like way, some of the production takes itself hilariously seriously, a purposeful choice that only makes the overall result funnier. Even in the few moments it’s not laugh-out-loud funny, it’s truly entertaining, an impressive feat for just one man who commands the stage continuously.

If that isn’t enough, the final punchline is perfectly ridiculous, Sandin rounds off the evening wonderfully. It seems this clown performer can only improve by giving audiences more of his wacky, surreal and hilarious tribute to James Bond. For truly unique entertainment, Pull My Goldfinger has you covered.

Continues to tour until 18 August 2024