Review: BRITNEY: FRIENDS AND NOTHING MORE, Soho Theatre

In the spirit of their popstar namesake, comedy duo Britney are bringing their latest hit Fringe show back one more time. For one hour, best friends Charly and Ellen poke fun at gender reveals, dating apps, and, most importantly, their teenage selves, showing us why they did so well in Edinburgh.

Charly Clive and Ellen Robertson have been best friends since secondary school, and now perform sketch comedy together under the name Britney - it really is amazing where our teenage friendships can lead us. Since their Fringe debut six years ago, the pair have performed at the festival and at Soho Theatre several times with new comedy shows, as well as making a BBC Three pilot.

Walking into Soho Theatre Upstairs after a day of snow and train strikes, I am greeted by pink lights, angsty Alanis Morissette songs, and two girls who clearly know each other inside out. In the hour that follows, Charly and Ellen talk about the struggles of being single, straight allies, Facebook, and middle aged women who work in the arts, riffing off each other at every opportunity they get.

There's a quip at the beginning of the show about why the pair chose sketch comedy over stand-up, but the show often feels closer to the latter. There's a lot more chatting than there is scripted comedy, and the lines are often blurred between the two. It's also often the talking that's funnier: an authentic friendship and winning improv skills bring the show to life, and leave it feeling spontaneous and warm - a real feat on a day when temperatures were dipping below freezing.

It really is Charly and Ellen's real-life friendship that's the scene-stealing star of Friends and Nothing More. Watching the pair perform feels like an hour of being in on the joke; of hanging out with your funniest friends, without the formality of watching a show. The audience immediately feels at ease, and the two take early sound problems in their stride.

It's also refreshing to see performers laugh on stage: Charly and Ellen frequently make each other break character, and rather than making the show feel unprofessional, it just adds to the authenticity. At times Friends and Nothing More is almost reminiscent of kids putting on a living room show for their parents - there's a gleeful girlhood to much of it.

The show's second major draw is its specificity. Charly and Ellen's friendship will ring particularly true to anyone who grew up in your standard British secondary school. With references to Blue Peter, top set Maths, McFly, and an infamous Year 11 talent show, the delicious specificity of the pair's anecdotes wins a lot of the laughs, revelling in a fun nostalgia throughout.

All this is not to say, however, that the sketches weren't funny. From a clever bit about Stephen King's wife to a ridiculous section involving heelies that had the audience cackling, there's no denying that Britney know their stuff.

What this show was missing, though, was a real cohesive thread. Friends and Nothing More is billed as a show 'about love', with the tagline 'which of these two girls will you fancy more?', but this felt like a mis-sell - not to leave them in the friend zone. Despite some smart returning jokes, it felt to me like the show would have been stronger with a little bit more concept. It was the combination of a real-life narrative and silly comedy that made their TV pilot so good, and it feels like this aspect of something else is missing here. It's more of a fun hangout with friends and less of a comedy theatre show.

However, if you fancy an hour of feeling part of the joke, angsty 2000s pop anthems, embracing your inner teenage girlhood, and remembering Blue Peter presenter Lindsey Russell for the first time in several years, get yourself to Soho Theatre before Britney close next week. It's a really good time.

Britney: Friends and Nothing More runs at Soho Theatre until 22 December

Photo Credit: Linda Blacker

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