Inglorious Stereo

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If Edinburgh comedy is constantly haunted by the spectre of television—be it the influx of talent scouts or the promise of access to the panel show circuit on the back of a successful run—there is one man who needn’t be nervous.

Paul Putner has appeared on many of the UK’s biggest TV comedy shows in the past decade. From starting out as the Curious Orange on Lee and Herring’s This Morning with Richard Not Judy, to his appearances in Little Britain, Spaced and The Peter Serafinowicz Show, Putner is a mainstay on British TV comedy. In Inglorious Stereo, he teams up with Glen Richardson to deliver a mad-cap hour of sketch and character comedy. 

There are a number of rather nice sketches in this show and only a couple that feel a little underworked; unusually for a sketch show, there is nothing that falls absolutely flat or fails to get a laugh. But, unfortunately, Inglorious Stereo is only genuinely, uproariously funny on a couple of occasions. In particular, Richardson’s Reverend Two Tone, a brilliantly observed churchman who tries with spectacular futility to appear down-with-the-kids, is a revelation. However, it’s Frankie Tan, a failing pub comic with a profound lack of confidence and an awful catchphrase, that inspires the biggest laughs of the night.

As their most successful creations team up for a manic, celebrity-themed rendition of “Old MacDonald Had A Farm”, Putner and Glen end on a high. It is only a little disappointing that the energy and standard of the closing 15 minutes isn't sustained for the whole show.