Desmorphia

In person, Des O'Connor is disarmingly sweet and courteous, a far cry from the acerbic compere of High Tease. Gifted with deadly ukulele skills and the ability to twist the rudest rhymes around sweet melodies, O'Connor is a rising star of the new cabaret scene, both in London and Scotland.

Apart from hosting High Tease, and working as musical director on Scott Mills The Musical, O'Connor has brought his own show to the Voodoo Rooms, Desmorphia. In part, he says, it is an attempt to show how his act is more than just hilariously vulgar singalongs.

"It is a range of characters," he affirms. "With the devil character at the end singing those songs". The front man of choice for many cabaret evenings across the country, and a regular at the more interesting festivals during the summer, he is not so much trying to lose the stereotype as prove that there is more to him that "Cheap Shite White Wine" and other classics.

Desmorphia is a natural growth from his last solo, The Normal Show. "Some of the characters are revisited," but Desmorphia is packed with original material.

That O'Connor is an entertainer of depth is demonstrated by his involvement with Scott Mills. He is an experienced musical director, and his May The Devil Drag You Under is ready to be expanded to international stature. For Scott Mills, he composed the score and contributed his unique wit to the songs. "It was great fun," and perhaps not something you'd expect him to have done.

O'Connor hasn't abandoned his most famous skills, however. He can be seen at High Tease this week, and will doubtless entertain with a few of his cheerful ditties about incest, extreme body modification and desire. Somehow, O'Connor can touch the most delicate subjects and find the laughter, without cruelty.

This is reflected in Desmorphia with the inclusion of "a Latin teacher who has his own problems," as well as "a surprise at the end - I can't tell you what it is!"