Magical Comedy delivered Just like that
Posted on 16th February 2024
Given the ubiquity of tribute bands that make an honest living pretending to be someone else, it’s perhaps surprising that the idea doesn’t branch out into other forms of entertainment. Admittedly, I’ve seen the likes of Bob Monkhouse, Kenneth Williams, Charlie Williams and Les Dawson brought to life on stage, but those occasions were vehicles for explored their life stories. I dare say something similar could be done with Tommy Cooper’s troubled personal life, but John Hewer clearly had something jollier in mind in his celebratory mix of comedy and magic.
Far younger than Cooper, Hewer relied heavily, and effectively, on the trademark knowing winks and mannerisms that was the veteran comedian’s stock in trade. They were particularly apt when faced with an audience knowing full well the punch line to come – the jokes were funny because, rather than in spite of, their familiarity. For much of the act if was enough to turn to the assembled and let them fill in the blanks. Of course, it wouldn’t be much of a tribute without bumbling ineptly through Cooper’s misfiring magic routines, which much like the great man himself, disguised what an accomplished magician Hewer really was.
He was joined on stage by Christopher Peters who, when not pulling the strings on the magic spoon routine or shoving all manner of unwieldy objects between Hewer’s legs, proved an adept pianist, providing comic song sorbets with an affectionate nostalgia that owed as much to Richard Stilgoe as Noel Coward. Nostalgia, after all, was firmly at the heart of this show, which concluded with a rendition of We’ll Meet Again. Judging by the reaction of the audience, which ranged from hearty chuckles to hysterical guffawing, it wouldn’t be a moment too soon.