Narc. Magazine Online
Reliably informed
Will Canning enjoys a ferocious, filthy and fearless night of comedy from the North East treasures
Image by Jessie’s Whimsical Photography
There’s nothing quite like the buzz of a Your Aunt Fanny night. A packed Stand on a muggy August evening, the crowd sunburnt, parched and primed for a dose of gleeful chaos from the North East’s finest all-female comedy collective, with the promise of both brand new sketches and returning favourites sharpened to perfection. Their Time of the Month residency has quickly become a staple of the city’s comedy calendar, each show proof that Fanny time is the best time.
Kicking off, Maxine Wade stormed the stage like a non-binary Bet Lynch spitting quickfire, abrasive Yorkshire lunacy, followed by an audacious Kerris Gibson in the clutches of the sternest, most brutal M&S bra fitter imaginable before a peek inside life as a Geordie camgirl, the sort of stuff VPNs were made for.
And then, the glorious eruption of Your Aunt Fanny themselves. They opened with Emma Crowley-Bennett’s pitch-perfect compere Nana Bastard (think Brick Top’s fierce granny) crooning Bang Bang (She Shot Me Down) in a thick Geordie accent that hit like a pint glass lobbed at last orders.
From there, it was a parade of chaos, craft and cuntery. The men’s support group sketch landed with spot-on moustache acting as ever from Jackie Edwards and absurd photographs of past lives (including, gloriously, a Cyberman). Izzy Sorby’s now iconic Alan the Taxi Driver was back too, this time rushing Matilda Neill to hospital after a jellyfish stings, blue and red lights flashing, and one of the best jellyfish gags ever written. Lydia Brickland wilted gloriously under the relentless charm offensive of a cosmic shopkeeper, all mushroom-tea and tarot patter, while Brogan Gilbert and Katie Powell’s turn as two pill-fizzing festival kids was face-acting heaven. The return of the infamous step-sibling/step-employee porn spoof capped the night with deliciously filthy silliness.
What really struck was how well the troupe balanced fresh characters with older favourites that have clearly been honed and polished to perfection. It made the show feel like both a playground for invention and a masterclass in their evolving craft.
With Time of the Month, Your Aunt Fanny aren’t just putting on another comedy night, they’re building a Newcastle institution. Ferocious, filthy, and fearless, the Fannies are comedy at its most alive, and with their next full-length sketch show Crease already in the works, expect them to keep pushing things further.
