A show that tested the good nature of the people of Liverpool. A sell-out arena blushed and just prayed that their comedy hero would click into character. I can watch re-run after re-run of Partridge and his stage how a decade ago made a lifelong impression. Tonight he dies 6,000 comedy deaths (or maybe an even larger audience?). He dropped the Thomas More sketch panned previously and if he drops the other unfunny stuff then he'll he left with just the Partridge sketch. If you are thinking of paying £30 for a ticket, please DON'T. It was criminally underprepared, not-funny tosh.
Rob P, October 2008
Sorry Steve as a loyal Cooganite I was just embarrassed for you in Blackburn tonight. The TV version of the characters always comes across brilliantly well but this fell horribly flat. I didn't notice the cue cards this far in the tour maybe that's cleared up but the link sketches were dire. Watching a man pretending to throw up from stage fright for two mins before Saxondale came on and the audience were clenching their buttocks with the stupid heckling at someone who clearly couldn't hit back. It warmed up a bit after the interval when Partridge came on but he was going to have to pull off a hell of a show to turn it around. The heckling was crushed this time but relying on foul language to get cheap laughs is an act of desperation and Partridge just doesnt swear. I hope this isn't the sign of a general decline because the TV stuff is sublime. You've earned your money, Steve, but not by charging a fiver a laugh
Joe Brown, October 2008
Thank heavens I'm not the only one who feels cheated by Steve Coogan's show. I saw it in Oxford on Friday and couldn't believe how shoddy it was. It was tired, stale and lazy. Lines written on his hands and on various props and cue cards is something that Coogan might parody but here he was, the biggest culprit of them all. The 'aren't we clever' linking sections came across as poorly performed drama student sketches- the kind of stuff that Paul Calf would ridicule. When he tried to get a laugh by spitting out an apple during the self indulgent 'I Am More' play I'd had enough and left a good 15 minutes before the end. I've NEVER done this before. I'm a huge Coogan fan but feel as though the phrase 'money for (very) old rope has never been more apt.
Mark Jones, October 2008
I too was at Derby and felt that the show was generally mediocre - some great moments but too much was just 'so so' and totally unmemorable. Whilst not as obvious as people from previous shows reported, Coogan clearly stumbled over his lines quite a lot and although he usually managed to get there in the end this did Affect the fluency of his delivery. And he clearly had all his lines written down on the 'prop' cue cards and clipboards he used when doing Partridge but this seemed to make him more confused as he struggled to deliver lines whilst keeping his notes in synch. I'm not sure if Coogan has been lazy in preparing for such a high profile tour - if he simply underestimated what is required - but the impression is of a man and a show that simply was not quite ready. You get the feeling that these smaller venue shows are really being used as the 'preview' shows for a the main arena gigs later in the year as this really did look like a 'work in progress'. And if that isn't the case, and this is the 'final' version then I fear that Coogan is going to have some uncomfortable nights at places like the O2 as this show is nowhere near substantial enough for that type of exposure.
Phil, October 2008
I saw Steve Coogan last night in Derby. I found the show to be entertaining and quite funny. However in parts I thought the humour was very 80's/90's. The comedy didn't have the sophistication that some of today's comedians have. I didn't like the sketches in between Steve's costume changes, they just wern't funny at all and appeared amateur. In fact the audience took the opportunity to go to the toilet during these times. We all have different opinions but I did find the Pauline/ Paul Calf and Alan Partridge sections to be the best. I do agree with some of the reviews that Steve did look little unprepared in that he read from prompt cards. They were props but you could tell he was reading from them. Give the guy a break though, as this is his first tour for ten years. Maybe Derby was a dress rehearsal for the bigger venues? The show was good but I have seen better shows from other comedians.
Tess, October 2008
As a long-term Coogan fan, I was bitterly disappointed with what I saw. Having seen Coogan's The Man Who Think's He's It tour, twice, in 1998, I couldn't believe how yesterday's venture seemed to be a watered down version of that very same tour. Same sort of format, Pauline Calf reading from a book (for example). I felt cheated from most of the £32.50 plus fees that I'd parted with to see him. So much of the show was a re-hash of last time it just hit-home how Hollywood focussed Coogan must be now. Disappointment was an understatement. To see tickets 'touted' on eBay in excess of £100 for two is setting up buyers for a fall. I hope these people read some of these reviews in time in order to make up their own minds. Sorry Steve, word of mouth will spread and your long-term fans will take the hit hardest. Gutted, absolutely gutted to the point of tears, that I have to write this. Al Murray, Lee Evans, Ricky Gervais? You wouldn't get a lacklustre effort from these guys. Coogan has built his fame and fortune with characters who are born to fail. Coogan came very close to being a character he'd created on stage all by himself as he, too, seemed to not notice, or care about his own shortcomings. Mediocre doesn't even cover it. Gutted just gutted. So disappointed.
Rory McAllister, October 2008
What? It wasn't nearly as bad as view from the stalls is making out. As in most opening nights there were a few stutters and fluffed lines but in general the show was very good. Considering Steve actually stated how nervous he was about doing a live tour I think you can give him a bit of a break, especially as he was on for almost 2 hours and performed as 5 different characters! The Saxondale set went down very well and the Alan Partridge set (which you could tell 95% of the people had came to see) was very funny and went down a storm.The little Coogan skit at the end was very amusing too, shows he's not taking himself too seriously.
Bill Carr, October 2008
Just witnessed Coogan die on stage at the opening night in Stoke-on-Trent. The arrogance of the man is astonishing, Throughout the first half the lines were written on his hand. A fact that was patently obvious to the audience. He looked nervous and was totally under-rehearsed and under-prepared. A lot of VERY unhappy punters. Painful to watch and an insult to the paying public. I can forgive a comic whose material I don't find funny. I can forgive the odd fluff or technical hitch on opening night. But Coogan simply hadn't made the effort. And that, from a comic of his calibre, is truly unforgivable. The people at that gig who paid £30 a ticket deserve a refund from his own (very deep) pocket.
