This was one of those nights where the luck of the draw and the running order meant that the second half of the show was more formulaic. Nikola McMurtrie had such a good voice she could probably make it as a straightforward folk singer – all she needs to do is drop the avocado headgear which she wore for a song about how avocados go off and get wasted so easily.
Kit Sullivan opened with something even quirkier and for a moment looked like he might be the first ever Musical Comedy Awards finalists not to have any music. When he did resort to songs though they weren’t quite as good as his strikingly anarchic entrance which had shades of Freddie Starr (ask your dad) about it.
Chris Timoney made the error of suggesting that he was “not everyone’s first choice but quite nice.” In terms of musical comedy he was underselling himself. The performer from Northern Ireland turned out to have a smart way with words and an ear for a catchy tune. He was also one of the few acts with a satirical edge with a song about things getting worse before they get better. In the end he didn’t make the top three, but, yes, he was quite nice.
Abigail Carter-Simpson got a little bit of mileage out of explaining that she might be the only woman from Essex with a double barrelled name before she took on Covid with a song about things she missed from 2019. On a night when most acts seemed to give Covid a wide berth it helped her to stand out and showed that there is plenty of potential here.
Orlando Gibbs went for a different take on musical comedy, using backing tapes of pop classics and subverting the lyrics. A Salt N Pepa opening promised much, a pretty lame Coldplay gag induced a groan from this critic before he pulled things back with a very relatable song about the joys of cancelling events and having an “anti-social life”.
Final act Amy Webber also made the 2020 final, which took place in 2021 due to Covid. She was in the same green dress that made her look like a Quality Street chocolate, but her material was new and found her rattling through spoof soundbites from BBC radio channels. It was fast-paced and clever and when she did some opera from Radio 3 so impressive she could probably do real arias as a side hustle. Her set was a strong finish to the night - maybe the best act of the second half, but did not bag a placing due to such a strong first half.
