Glasgow Comedy Festival
Alex Norton
Citizens Theatre, Glasgow
Marianne Gunn
Four stars
ALTHOUGH it might, arguably, have found a better home with the Aye Write book festival, Alex Norton's autobiographical show was perfectly placed being performed on his much-loved Citizens Theatre stage. "I used to be allowed to sneak in and sit up there in the gods," the Gorbals-born actor admitted. His love for the venue is palpable. "There's Been A Life" covered that span from his childhood to the end of Taggart in 2010. Using clips – including a cringe-inducing "This Is Your Life" opener – he talked of his upbringing and career with fondness, a touch of nostalgia and a fair number of belly laughs.
Norton is distinctly affable, even if he has a tendency to laugh at his own jokes. "I hope that story is true," follows many of his apocryphal tales of the Glasgow variety scene and his burgeoning fascination with the theatre which began when he was employed at the Pavilion as an electrical technician. His early TV career included working with a young, "ridiculously talented" David Bowie and his future film work would see Norton work with the likes of Clint Eastwood, Mel Gibson and Dudley Moore. His glassy-eyed reminiscence of his perfect moment with Moore (featuring Bach's The Well-Tempered Clavier above the Grand Canal in Venice) was a masterclass in the art of emotive storytelling.
With shout-outs for celebrity audience members (including Colin McCredie and Elaine C. Smith), there was a slight danger of the evening sliding into "luvvie" territory, but Norton's risqué banter tempered that. An insightful Q&A led to a tragic-comic admission: "My childhood? It was like Billy Elliot but much, much worse." Ballet's loss has been acting's gain.
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