EDINBURGH 2017: BWW Q&A- News Revue 2017

For anyone unfamiliar with it- what exactly is News Revue?

NewsRevue is the Guinness World Record Breaking song and sketch show full of parodies of popular songs mercilessly mocking world leaders to great comic effect.

I imagine you're having to do some rewrites?

Since we opened we realised some news stories are just not big enough. For example, we wanted to include Conor McGregor in the show as he's such a flamboyant character but sadly he's more niche than we thought.

Are there any issues this year you think are off limits for satire?

No, not necessarily, it depends purely on how you present the issues. Sometimes if you can't find the right angle or target, issues may seem off limits. If you can find a way to expose the perpetrators of particular events rather than victim shaming then it can be incredibly powerful. In the aftermath of 9/11 one of my all-time favourite NewsRevue songs was a duet between Bush Senior and Bush Junior to Cat Steven's/Yusuf Islam's Father and Son - our opening line of which was 'It's not time to go to war...' You could have heard a pin drop the first night the two actors performed that just two weeks after the event.

Who would you recommend comes to see NewsRevue?

We have a 14-year-old age limit, which is a shame as there is a lot of material I think younger people and children would love and it's a dream one day to create NewsRevue for kids, but in the meantime I'd recommend the show to anyone who is aware of what is going on in the world at large and wants some cathartic laughter!

...and who would you advise not to?

People who are easily offended and don't have a sense of humour. Certain members of the so-called Snowflake Generation probably wouldn't enjoy certain aspects of the show.

Timings and ticket information for News Revue are available on the edfringe website.

Photo credit: Alex Brenner

To post a comment, you must register and login.