Jigsy (Bristol)

The Tobacco Factory has struck gold. Very, very finite gold, because as things stand, this very funny, very warm and very thoughtful show has only one more night booked anywhere, ever (Wed 21 Sep, Tobacco Factory).

Les Dennis plays Jigsy, a comic veteran of the Liverpool working men’s clubs in 1997, their dying days. He plays a man full of wry reflection, great jokes and an honest eye for the soul.

Whether talking about comic greats, Liverpudlians’ good humour or harder and sadder times, Jigsy has you with him every step of the way. Writer Tony Steveacre, director Hannah Chissick and Les Dennis have created such a magnetic character that you can’t look away for a second. The wit is winning, the timing immaculate, Harriet de Winton‘s set is design so effective I can still smell the fug and stick to the floor.

To see an audience so lit up by a show and a creative team so modestly chuffed by their well-deserved standing ovation is a delight.

I’ve not laughed so heartily nor been so carefully touched by a show for ages. If you miss it here, make sure you catch it when it goes national, as it surely must.