Robin Ince (with Michael Legge) @ The King's Arms, Salford, 7 July

Review by Robert Keeling | 15 Jul 2014

Robin Ince pulls a double shift at Greater Manchester Fringe as he both previews his solo Edinburgh show Blooming Buzzing Confusion and then returns for his double act with Michael Legge, Pointless Anger, Righteous Ire.

Ince’s solo show, in its finished form, will take in various issues regarding the mind, consciousness and the inner workings of the brain. For now, though, it involves various loosely pieced together rants prompted by a stack of around 250 cards from which he riffs and ad-libs to great effect. Given his involvement in sciencey programmes with Professor Brian Cox, Ince’s love of his subject is no secret and a key part of the show will involve examining what interests him so much about the human brain and how our minds work. A lot of the highlights tonight, however, actually come from him getting side-tracked and ranting about matters ranging from the Guardian, growing old and Tony Blair. He’s a man who’s never happier than when he’s angry, and while the show may not flow together just yet, Ince’s loud and frustrated style remains as enjoyable as ever.

The second part of the evening sees Ince team with Michael Legge as the pair vent their frustrations and invite the audience to share their own. Once a grievance is aired, everyone then votes on whether it is pointless anger, or righteous ire. The duo have great chemistry and bounce off each other well, which is no surprise given that they have been performing together for several years. The concept in general, however, doesn’t really take off, with rants about the likes of arena comedy and Mrs Brown’s Boys coming across as amusing but slightly predictable. The audience’s suggestions don’t really offer a great deal either, with “Yoda in adverts” being the only one to really garner a response. While the concept never takes hold, however, the two comics are adept enough to entertain regardless and the show works far better when it’s just those two ribbing each other and ad-libbing freely.

The Pointless Anger. Righteous Ire section runs out of steam slightly, but both shows are thoroughly entertaining and well worth seeking out if you’re up in Edinburgh next month. The former is clearly a work in progress but judging by the skeleton show Ince puts on tonight, the final article could be a real gem.