Edinburgh Fringe comedy review

Sometimes inspired, sometimes dumb, and often both at the same time, the simple silliness of Jeremy Segway is captured from the very start as two men in overstuffed trousers glide around a too-small stage on their motorised wheels, bumping into things and occasionally destroying them. Whether the breakages were deliberate or not is tantalisingly uncertain - as with much of this show, it’s unclear where the script ends and the improv begins.

Our fools on wheels are Daniel and Radcliffe, the sons of the overbearing, visionary entrepreneur Jeremy Segway, now dead after plunging off a cliff on the eponymous device he invented - the very same fate that befell the real owner of Segway, Jimi Heselden.

From here, the fictionalised version departs from the truth as the sons recount their journey through life – from a bottom-up career in Tescos to living the Titanic plot – as they try to escape the shadow of their emotionally distant father. We hear some terrible chat-up lines, visit the vibrant creative scene of early 1990s Rotterdam and see, via a coma dream, how the cult of Segway has engulfed the world in 2042.

It’s all preposterous, over-the-top and only occasionally self-indulgent as the pair (in real-life clown duo The Duncan Brothers, creators of previous cult Fringe show Legs) over-extend an idea. 

Their main asset is using their welcoming charm to create a shared sense of fun in the room, cueing the audience to encourage their nonsense, and creating a virtuous feedback loop of more playfulness. There’s usually something of a groan when performers ask everyone to stand up, but here the compliance is enthusiastic… and well rewarded with an excellently punny payoff to their National Anthem skit.

Using the power of slapstick stupidity to make strangers feel part of a community, united in their adherence to a daft idea – that’s the spirit of the Fringe right there.

Review date: 29 Aug 2022
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett
Reviewed at: PBH's Free Fringe at Legends