Goose on their Edinburgh Fringe return

'Sweaty one-man cartoons,’ reads the description on the website for sketch duo Goose – a description that could not be more succinct and apt.

It’s best to start with the adjective: sweat. For where Goose are concerned, there's a lot of it. "Every Edinburgh we have to write more and more references in about how sweaty he is," says Ben Rowse, one half of the sketch group.

It's certainly true that Adam Drake perspires more than any act we've ever seen. At last year’s show, Kablamo, the front row was warned they were part of a splash zone, and the pair had to come up with increasingly inventive terms for the unleashed spray upon the crowd whenever Drake span to indicate a scene change. 'Sweat tsunami' was a particular favourite.

Rowse explains: "We have to start addressing it earlier and earlier every year, because if you don’t address it, people do get quite worried. People get like, 'Is he malfunctioning?'"

"You see people going on WebMD on their phones," adds Drake, "and we still don’t know if it’s healthy. It’s either really healthy or really unhealthy."

You may have noticed the initial statement also mentioned ‘one-man cartoons’, yet there have been two people speaking about Goose and its sweaty machinations. This is not an accident. Both write the shows but Drake is the one that performs. And perspires.

Last year, Rowse's acting gig consisted solely of setting up a sketch premise, but this year they’ve had a little departure. "We wrote a big song this year," says Drake, "and there was going to be a bit about why Ben isn’t in the show. The joke was going to be that he was really bad and he was going to do things really badly. But then when we rehearsed it he was so bad at being bad that we had to cut it. So now we’ve just stopped referencing a second invisible member."

Perhaps most perfect, however, is the final word of that initial sentence – cartoons. Drake's fast-paced, multi-role performances are reminiscent of scenes in Bugs Bunny cartoons, when the rapid-fire rabbit would play baseball, in turn becoming the batter, pitcher, catcher, umpire and sexy broad in the crowd. Following this kind of example, it's no wonder Drake sweats so much leaping about the stage, playing the ludicrous cast of characters that make up their show.

Boundless energy brings the whole thing vividly and hilariously to life. The gags per minute and rate of the dialogue are reminiscent of Airplane! and The Naked Gun, as well as more modern cartoon like sitcoms such as 30 Rock or Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. "Ben lent me Police Squad! while we were at uni," recalls Drake. "I remember watching that non-stop."

The speedy action also means that repeat viewings of Goose shows are encouraged, as the audience gets a chance to pick up on throwaway punchlines they might have missed the first time round.

This year they have a bigger stage as their popularity has dictated they move to the Piccolo theatre in George Square Gardens. But one big problem faces them – will it be hot enough? Last year’s venue was, as Drake puts it, "kind of perfect for convection currents," whereas 2016’s show Hydroberkserker is in a venue that is "legally ventilated".

With the sweatiness of their one-man cartoons in doubt, Rowse chimes in: "We can pack some heaters."

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Goose: Hydroberserker, Assembly George Square Gardens (Piccolo), 4-28 Aug, 4:30 pm, £6-12