... Back at the Chicken Shack Hen and Chickens This sextet of young male comedians coped with some poor sketch-based material in the first half--as well as some diabolical lighting--to leave a goodish impression. But the build-up took time. We were greeted initially by Soho louche Laurie Mellor, a terribly disappointing creation who was posh, camp and got drunk. Awful. But that is exactly what ...

... 48th Annual Blackpool Magicians Convention Blackpool Some 2,500 magic fans from around the world came to see a host of magicians at this mammoth event, which took nlaoe at the Winter Gardens A packed programme included lectures, shows, workshops and competitions, ending in a gala show at the Opera House. Here, compere Johnnie Casson kept things moving at a slick pace, telling great gags and ...

... St David's Night Comedy Special The Spot On the face of it, the Welsh seem to share less comedic common ground than their Celtic cousins. Where Irish stand-ups can resort to blarney or the mention of Riverdance to get a diffident crowd onside, Welsh performers find less mileage in Treorchy Male Voice Choir or pit closures. Something the diversity of acts drawn to Covent Garden for this all ...

... Tristan and Isolde Royal Opera House Wagner's Tristan and Isolde, something of a rarity in Britain, is a difficult work to bring off. Alas, Herbert Wemicke's new ROH staging is stand-and-deliver oratorio. The setting comprises 'his' and 'hers' trucked enclaves (blue for a boy, red for a girl) which discreetly rearrange them selves conjuring sails, prow, towers, and cliff-top platform. Spear ...

... The Queen of Spades Copenhagen The first-night audience gave a standing ovation to Kaspar Holten's new production of Tchaikovsky's late masterpiece, which the occasion did not warrant. New music director Michael Schonwandts conducting is wilful, veering between loud and fast (exciting) and over-expres- sively slow (sensitive). Textures are frequently muddy. Singers often battle through a wall ...

... A smart slice of la dolce vita London Coliseum The Turk in Italy ENO's enterprising Italian season continues with one of Rossini's sharpest and wittiest operas. The delectably orchestrated score cushions and enhances vocal lines of limpid elegance and sly humour, a rhythmic spring fuelling its fleet progress. The poet Prosdocimo, partici pant in his own libretto, chronicles the volatile ...

... Variety acts with spice Bristol Ivor Bennett Showcase A varied night of entertainment was on offer at the Bedminster Down Club and a large section of the audience was trade. Harpist Emily Mullins proved to be a popular meet and greet artist, and compere Bob Webb, with his tirade of sardonic wise cracks and clever link comedy, was an inspired choice for the job. Atlantic Crossing were a ...

... Square route EastEnders lead writer Tony Jordan was picked to help pen the soap when working as a market trader. Ben Dowell finds he still dislikes the new job today I hate the process of writing, lead writer of EastEnders Tony Jordan told me in a side room at the soap's home in Elstree Studios. My God. I half expected this bombshell to be accom panied by the massive drum beats of an Easties ...

... Funny Girls Christmas Show Robin Duke Blackpool Basil Newby's phenomenally successful transvestite showbar Funny Girls has gone to town with what is already proving to be a record-breaking seasonal show. Having recently put paid to rumours alleging his imminent departure, headliner Betty 'Legs' Diamond (Simon Green) has come up with a virtually brand new show in what is the venue's most ...

... Swindon Norman Pace took leave from his starring role in West End musical Chicago to hit the road with long time comedy partner Gareth Hale. A cold, wet Monday night at the Wyvern Theatre may not appear to match West End glamour, but that proved no problem to the near-capacity audience, which enjoyed some familiar routines along with equally familiar rudery. The duo welcomed them by adapting ...

... Zippo's Circus Blackheath/Touring There is a familiarity about Zippo's--a sense of tradition. Clowns, trapeze, horses, jugglers--everything is there except for the tigers and elephants to remind us of days gone by. When every member of the team helps out, not only in each other's acts, but also selling prog rammes, it is hard not to wonder about the circus' financial state. In these days of TV ...

... A welcome round of nostalgia BY JOHN MARTLAND With the Millennium Dome in the news for all the wrong reasons right now, memories of an earlier structure--the Dome of Discovery--were revived in Fabulous Fifties (Music Entertainment for R2, from Tuesday, April 18). The title, of course referred to those ten extraordinary years that were, in presenter Alan Whicker's words, squeezed like a ...