Magazine

Review - Bridget Christie: War Donkey

Being a self confessed fan of Bridget’s off the wall costumed character creations, including her maniacal A Ant - complete with the finest collection of ant jokes ever conceived and collated, I looked forward to being subjected to Christie’s new inception – 'War Donkey'.

I had anticipated this to be a filmic rant based on Spielberg’s War Horse, which for possibly five or six minutes fulfilled expectations, but true to BC form, the show segued into a series of raconteur’s exposés of feminist, or anti-feminist situational curios and her declared war (tenuously alluding to where the donkey comes in) on misogyny, punctuated by an off the wall, again costumed cameo characterization of Edwin Starr performing in his over-weight, past-his-prime finery. If that doesn’t confuse enough, Christie reminds us that donkeys personify comedy and women, and so the rant continues.

Whatever one’s reaction to the presentation intellectually may have been, I for one was laughing at the on-stage activity for the full hour – and Bridget’s device of having the third person in the room (Bridget herself) relating to and confiding in the audience, creates the comedy get-out clause when either the comedian or the audience needs a break, and the clever interactive ending device which will not be revealed here, leaves the audience wanting more and on a high. This is a fully engaging and endearing performance. Why Bridget Christie is not one of the superstars of female television comedy is beyond me.

What she talked about: donkeys, feminism, comedy

Show Details: 1.30pm, Assembly Rooms. BOOK HERE.

Rating: 1/2 (because nobody is perfect)