Review by Steve Bennett

Vladimir McTavish is a character ably played by Paul Sneddon, although it's only really the silly name that give this away as the character is fairly simple and therefore believable, a Scottish comic who talks about Scotland a lot.

The show is ostensibly about Scotland's history, though it actually covers a whole host of issues: the smoking ban, the Scottish parliament, war, the World Cup and TV schedules.

It's a strong, solid show, but fairly unremarkable Sneddon's writing is good, most of the gags work, there's some clever callbacks to previous jokes, the occasional smart pun; it's all clearly the work of someone who knows exactly what they're aiming for and hits the target.

There's also some banter with the (predominately Scottish) audience and some slightly darker stuff considering which was worse: the Highland cleansings or England winning a World Cup.

There are some drawbacks - non-Scots (and particularly non-Brits) may find bits difficult to follow due to references to Scottish historical events, and the accent can make it harder to catch everything when McTavish picks up speed.

It's a good enough show, delivered by a consummate professional, but nothing special.

Dean Love

Review date: 1 Aug 2006
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett