Twonkey’s Basket Weaving In Peru – Laughing Horse @ Dragonfly

What would happen if an achingly cool cocktail bar in the vicinity of Edinburgh’s Public Triangle made available a small function room for Mark E Smith and Don Van Vliet? (Difficult to predict, the results probably tricky to discern, but definitely must-see.)

There’s a wealth of strange stuff going on in obscure rooms each August in Scotland’s capital, but nothing rivals a Twonkey adventure for surreality, disjointedness and a plethora of badly-behaved, home-made puppets and malfunctioning props. Chief of which tonight relentlessly fidgets atop Twonkey’s head before being discarded just past the halfway mark. By which stage the audience have surrendered to the wonderful chaos of The Maradona Song, The Unborn Spider, Chris Hutchison (hurrah!), The (dreaded) Ship’s Wheel, accounts of sexual practises known as ‘pouching’ and others involving curtain rails.

Brains gently reduced to the consistency of porridge; we’re primed perfectly for… some panpipes. Best played, we’re advised, when wearing the correct gloves sporting the appropriate bows and pom-poms. He is, after all, despite the fact most of us had forgotten, heading for Peru. Alpacas garner a mention, there’s a frantic search for a missing chainsaw but an encounter with some snakes sends our hero packing before he’s really had a chance to settle, find a way to make a living or even meet Paddington’s Aunt. 

The music really shines tonight, reprising some of the elusive sensations conjured by Dawn Of The Replicants, the band Twonkey (aka Paul Vickers) fronted in the 90’s. Spike Milligan receives a nod, there’s a song about death and a showbiz cameo from none other than Steve Martin, the Hollywood A-lister’s animated wiry limbs portraying the struggle inherent in thinking up new film ideas. Physical theatre at its best.

Twonkey was no stranger to the pages of the NME once upon a time, and deep within its archives lies a small pile of un-used genre categories. He’s in a league of his own and it’ll be a one act genre; High Shambol… Shambolic High… Ramble-clatter?

Reviewer: Roger Jacobs

Reviewed: 3rd August 2023

North West End UK Rating: