I could have saved myself a lot of time as a judge at this year’s Sketch Off Final. By a quirk of running order, my first three choices were the first three acts out of twelve, in precisely that order. Other judges didn’t quite agree with me, but I think we were in total agreement that this was the weirdest Sketch Off we’d ever seen.
My favourites were first on and it’s lucky that SUPERHAUS_COLLECTIVE/3/DISTURB.zip didn’t win as I don’t think their name would fit on the trophy (I’m not even sure if the above is their entire name – if you google it all you get is my review). This double act came on in white masks waving nunchucks and, after removing their headgear, explained that they were a Theatre In Education Legz Akimbo-style duo teaching kids about the dangers of nunchucks. This was the most accessible aspect of their act, the rest was a mix of high-energy shape throwing and meta-banter about their friendship. I thought they were brilliant, there was a slight judging disagreement and they came third.
We were all in agreement that Betty Thompson was a superb character. A pink clad Scot who kept spraying water on her face to make sure she was hydrating, Thompson shuttled between streetwise chat and classical references to Sumerians etc. It was more character comedy than sketch comedy but ticked all the relevant tickle boxes - laugh out loud funny and also very clever. First place was well-deserved.
Although the third act was so good Thompson had to share the first prize. Jenny and Reese were a duo who seemed to draw as much inspiration from Samuel Beckett and Harold Pinter as Morecambe and Wise. Their routines about stealing meal deals and stolen phones had a delightful off-kilter feel to them. It was anti-comedy but anti-comedy that was big on laughs. After a heated debate the judges awarded them joint first place.
After such a strong start it was difficult for other acts to make a similar impact. Next up The Burger Boys were a pretty conventional double act, working slickly through a number of scenarios, such as mind reading and teaching life skills. It was the luck of the draw that they were following the joint winners.
Hamish Lloyd Barnes came on all caped up as a ghost, determined to scare the audience but only succeeding in making them giggle. It was a fun off the wall OTT actor-y act, with a hint of Rik Mayall about it, with Lloyd Barnes taking repeated bows and getting bigger laughs each time.
The final act of the first half also had a theatrical air. It was Javert, from Les Mis. Well, actually Bennet Kavanagh, who has previously been on Britain’s Got Talent. There was total committment to the role here as he strutted onto the stage and berated the audience for six solid minutes. Nothing miserable here, it was a joy to watch.
After the interval we were treated to Inspector Muffins, a Poirot-esque character with a pipe that blew bubbles. Removing the mac to reveal a sexy police outfit was a bit of a cheap stunt but the comic element was strong.
Double act Supermalts played out a sketch which featured the Duke of Wellington involved in a duel which didn’t quite strike the right note for me, but the enthusiastic crowd seemed to like them so either i missed something or they had a lot of friends in the audience.
Walter Pitt was another of the final’s oddballs, channelling a touch of Harry Hill when he produced a Ronan Keating puppet and proceeded to deliver a distinctive reinterpretation of Life is a Rollercoaster.
The oddball dial was cranked up further by Lady Bolognese, face-painted dinner ladies Barbara and Veronica with a heady edge of menace. The kind of warped humour that makes the League of Gentlemen seem positively cosy by comparison, they managed to snatch second place.
Next act Lily Edwards couldn’t really compete with the Bolognese madness, but final act Maya Ricote came close, simply by dressing like an inflated Kim Kardashian, all massive boobs and gargantuan bum, with attitude as exaggerated as her body. It was certainly a memorable way to end this year’s Sketch Off.
Pictures of Betty Thompson and Jenny and Reese by Steve Ullathorne.
