Bruce Fummey’s Scottish history show comes to Perth

Mar 16 2010 Perthshire Advertiser Tuesday

PERTH’S own funnyman Bruce Fummey will bring down the curtain on Scottish history at the AK Bell Theatre on Friday, March 26.

“It’s not the end of the world,” said the Perth-born stand-up comic, “but it will probably be the last of my one man shows about Scottish history.

“In the last few years I have covered Rabbie Burns, Robert the Bruce and Bonnie Prince Charlie. In this year’s show ‘A Funny thing Happened on the way to the Scottish Parliament’ I touch on everything from the ancient Picts to the modern day. Next year I am moving on to other topics, so this is probably the last time I’ll be asking ‘Wha’s like us?’”

Bruce’s fifth one man show comes to Perth on March 26 some nine months after its 25-night run at last year’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival: “My shows start life at the Edinburgh Fringe each August, but the high spot is undoubtedly performing them here in Perth each spring. Sometimes an international audience in Edinburgh don’t quite get what’s so funny about Fife, but people in Perth know exactly what I’m on about.”

While Bruce’s main job is now making people laugh, he still spends a bit of time teaching at Perth High School. He explained: “My first job was teaching, so I still like people to leave my shows thinking they have had a good laugh and learned something along the way.

“This year’s show doesn’t have such a strong historical narrative as previous years, because it’s not about one particular character or period, but it does have more gags.

“It’s probably appropriate to do the show in the AK Bell Theatre, because every year my research starts with me coming along to the library and disturbing them with requests for books that aren’t on the shelves. Inevitably someone has to go running down to the basement to find some obscure book about Mary Queen of Scots just for me to make a daft gag about her being ginger.”

Tickets for the 8pm show ‘A Funny Thing Happened on the way to the Scottish Parliament’ can be purchased at Perth Theatre or Concert Hall, by phoning 01738 621031, or online at www.horsecross.co.uk