Jonno: Here Comes Mr Funny review – Sheeps comic leaves flock for revelatory solo
The Saturday Night Live UK writer, who is one-third of the sketch troupe Sheeps, balances sincerity and shtick in a show with big laughs
There are reasons to take up standup, and then there’s Daran “Jonno” Johnson launching this new career aged 38 as a form of exposure therapy for anxiety. At least we have an explanation for why this prodigiously funny and talented man hasn’t gone solo before. As one-third of the sketch-group-of-their-generation, Sheeps, and now head writer on the hit Saturday Night Live UK, he doesn’t lack credentials for a tilt at standup.
And, while Here Comes Mr Funny has its teething problems, it’s a bright start to Jonno’s singular life, and gave me some of my biggest laughs of this fringe. What’s surprising about it, and arguably part of what works least well, is that Jonno – a man hitherto hidden behind tiers of irony in his performing career – reveals so much of himself. He admits to being nervous. He talks about envying watching his peers on TV, half expecting to see himself appear on screen and join them.
Some of this material is delivered from Jonno’s “stool of sincerity”, to which he repairs (or so he tells us) when wishing to speak from the heart. In fact, things aren’t as clear cut as that. One of the great charms of this performer is his impishness, a delight in gambolling one step ahead of his audience. The line does blur here between sincerity and shtick – but as Jonno gains standup confidence, it could fruitfully do so more.
In the meantime, the shtick is summoned forth from a grab-bag of comedy styles, that includes banjo ditties (the smutty and surreal songs will be catnip to fans of Sheeps’ cult-hit Christmas album), a one-man staging of a supposed new Lloyd Webber musical, and an improvised rap that refuses very sillily to proceed as intended. A particular highlight is the Bond themes sequence, in which Jonno glories to lead us up musical garden paths before slamming lyrical gates in our faces. I would classify this experiment in confronting his fears as a qualified success – but here’s hoping his therapist adjudges the work incomplete, and requires of Jonno repeated returns to solo standup.
At Monkey Barrel, Edinburgh, until 30 August.