EDINBURGH 2023: Review: THE LEEDS TEALIGHTS: A VERY SPECIAL BIRTHDAY PARTY, Just The Tonic At The Caves

When it comes to the student comedy groups throughout the UK, such as The Dead Ducks, The Cambridge Footlights or The Durham Revue, there is a wide variety of comedy at this year's Fringe and, therefore, a lot of competition. Whereas each show is worthy of your time it is worth noting the differences in comedic styles between the groups. If silly humour is your thing then The Leeds Tealights are the group for you.

Offering a good mix of short and long sketches, allowing for a well paced show, they fly through their collection of sketches with confidence and ease, each member showing a deep understanding of their own material as well as the timing and instincts needed for comedic performances. 

Some highlights of the show include the "do you follow football?" sketch, a scene in which drinking wine suddenly turns people into snobby aristocrats and the French McDonalds sketch, all of which are testament to the talents on display, exhibiting the group's strong chemistry with one another as well as each performer's strengths, and of course the strengths within the writing too.

Unfortunately there is a handful of rather poor sketches throughout the show which do disrupt the flow, the biggest casualties of this being the improv sketch and the chartered accountant sketch, both of which failed to garner much fanfare from those in attendance.

In spite of this the show generally comes with laughs a-plenty and the hour is brought to a close with the magnificently goofy sketch in which someone attempts to propose to their girlfriend via a flash mob after just discovering that they hate flash mobs. It is so ridiculously silly and performed to perfection that one can't help but laugh and it ends the evening on a high.

The Leeds Tealights are a talented group of performers whose cohesion as a unit is notable from the moments they walk on stage. Their sense of humour may not be for all and the lack of variety in the sketches performed on stage may turn some off but the group will certainly get a laugh out of you and are worthy of seeing at this year's Fringe.

The Leeds Tealights: A Very Special Birthday Party runs at Just the Tonic at the Caves until 27 August.

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