fringe: dandyman

Take a dash of Mr Bean, throw in a pinch of Ed Grimley, a handful of Jacques Tati, some juggling balls, a bowtie made of straws and a watermelon and you've arrived somewhere in the neighbourhood of Daniel Oldaker's Dandyman.

I wasn't completely convinced at the start of the show as to how funny Oldaker actually was... the audience seemed to be laughing more at him somewhat nervously rather than because he was genuinely funny.

And there was a slightly odd change of tone in the second sequence that seemed at odds with what had gone before it.

But the longer Dandyman went on, the more Oldaker won me over.

Although at times it feels a little like a magic show, it's definitely more of a physical comedy though... the few "magic tricks" he does are played for the comedy aspect and subverting the audience's expectations rather than a true magic trick.

And without giving anything away, the final sequence with the watermelon is not only like nothing I've ever seen before, but was hilarious and clever and unexpected.

A definite quirky late night Fringe treat.

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