Jollie: John & Ollie Stuck Together

Jollie does not start well. There’s some woeful singing, an accordion, and a couple of crass jokes about Myra Hindley. And, of course, there’s the terrible title. But after the first five minutes this show improves at such an alarming rate that it’s hard to avoid feeling a pang of jealousy towards the couple of latecomers who shuffled in quietly at the end of the first number.

Comprising a series of bizarre sketches and songs interspersed with what is essentially a lengthy argument about John stealing Ollie’s girlfriend, Jollie is something of a WWIP – a Work Which is In Progress, as John explains. He’s not wrong, either; it looks for all the world like a low-budget student production, and one early sketch relies on the kind of unthinking homophobia that ought to have died with Eddy Murphy’s stand-up career.

As the hour goes on, however, the pair grow in confidence and the show grows to a hilarious and oddly touching crescendo. One song in particular, the Facebook-inspired “I’m not sponsoring you!” is close to perfection and suggests a bright future on the musical comedy circuit.

John and Ollie have a genuine chemistry on stage, and at their best the pair’s dynamic suggests a more middle-class Mighty Boosh. There is a sense that these two talented young performers are capable of more than they deliver, but the show contains enough inspired material to make it well worth watching. Just don’t worry if you’re running a little late.