Review by Steve Bennett

The Colour Ham - no I don't know what it means either - mix traditional magic and mindreading turns with sketch comedy, in a way which makes you wonder why it's not been done before.

Not that it's a brilliant example of any of the genres, but it's at least it's an attempt to go beyond the usual comedy associated with magic - which tends to require either the tricks to go wrong or the jokes to be cheesy, whether in an ironic or a Paul Daniels way.

This Scottish trio have a rock and roll verve, certainly, and get the crowd nicely prepped for entertainment. The free packets of Haribo on the seats helps, too. Nice touch.

Kevin McMahon is the magician, Colin McLeod the mentalist and Gavin Oattes the comedy sidekick, the daft jester dancing and joking around the main attractions, who indulge him. They’ve got an easy-going dynamic, although Oattes’s role is nominally not to be impressed by any of the trickery, and it injects the hour with infectious good humour.

Without him, the magic element especially would be unexceptional, with old cup-and-ball tricks and a couple of cheap prop illusions. They are done slickly and with some charm, but the comedy is certainly a misdirection to make these seem better than they are. And the supposedly gruesome finale had no one fooled. Their biggest trick is no one really cared, the audience were all caught up in the high spirits of the gig.

McLeod is more impressive, with mind games not in the Derren Brown category but certainly very intriguing, including stage hypnotism that’s far from humiliating and a boggling experiment showing some sort of ‘psychic link’ between a couple.

The team have a loose confidence in each other that belies the fact they have only been working together for a couple of years. The act still needs work, certainly, but they certainly know their fun, if not always their funny.

Review date: 11 Aug 2012
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett
Reviewed at: Just The Tonic at The Caves