Stand up. With a point. And to the point.

Manifesto is a big word. It’s a contract. It tells people what you are going to do, what you aim to do. Political parties have this habit of making up manifestos that will get them elected, and then breaking every promise – and the bank – in the process, before somehow coming out of parliament some £2 million richer. Quite an achievement for a job which pays £60,000 ish a year. I wonder where all that money comes from…

In the meantime, political agitator, stand up comedian, prankster and londoner Mark Thomas is on the road. Bringing the polemic to the people. From his history of political protest to socialist anarchism to tear streamingly funny, Mark has a manifesto. And the audience are writing it, one night at a time.

And that Manifesto is simple ; don’t tell the people what they want. Let the people tell you what they want – and campaign on it. So with that in mind, he’s touring around the country, getting a pledge from each town, and putting it to the polls.

And like Football, it’s a show of two halves, all based around the simple premise that it’s NOT the economy, Stupid ; but it’s the Stupid Economy.  The first half is the build up – a travelogue of protest, polemic and razor sharp common sense, followed by the second half. The vote. Where the ideas are put to the test. Silly, sensible, and hysterical, they are all here, wrapped up in two hours of socialism and sarcasm.  All via Powerpoint, Star Wars, men with ponytails, Iron maiden, DNA, lawyers, and the absurdly gratuitious expenses claim for a moat by an MP.

Whilst touching on some of the same areas as his last tour – after all, comic gold is worth keeping – its 95% new and fresh. Frequently laugh out loud hilarious – from the suggestion of Iron Maiden for the new national anthem, [The Number Of the Beast] or that OCD sufferers should be employed as cleaners in the NHS, to get rid of MRSA –  to the deadly serious ; such as that there should be an age of consent of 16 for all religions, and that all product labels should state the age of the person who made the product and display a picture of the working conditions the product was made in. It’s a mixture of comedy and serious politic points ; to entertain and to inform at the same time. Infotainment, if you like.

A lot of comedians seem to rely on bizarre surrealism [hello mr. Izzard] , a series of unending disconnected comic hall-esque punchlines [Jimmy Carr] or mere coarseness [Hello Mr. Brand] and shock value. Not mark Thomas – he relies on razor sharp politican analysis, satire, sarcasm and common bloody sense. Its comedy with a point – and to the point.  You may go into the gig knowing nothing about the politics of the house of parliament, and you’ll come out entertained, educated and informed. Its almost like spending the night with a cross between your local SWP organise [minus the venomous revolutionary spiel, but all the insightful deconstruction], your dad [minus all the crap jokes] and the best comedian you’ve never heard of.

And unlike a lot of stand up, this is truly interactive – not the same jokes every night, in the same order, stuck to as rigidly as a play – but instead a fluid, on the spot ability to make 1000 people laugh at the same time, reacting immeadiately to suggestions as they come out of the box and voting for the best one. And at the end, for the person who makes the winning suggestion, a teatowel replete with the tours logo and a round of applause. It’s like being at the Socialist version of  a game show…a sort of bizarre contradiction if I ever heard of one. After all, when the last comedy gig you went to where the ourcome wa a pledge to build 100,00 council homes a year? And who could disagree with that idea - to get the construction workers back into work, and reduce the crushing effect of homelessness?

Are you ready to do your part for democracy? And put your views to the people? Go along, write down what you think the government should do, and put it to the audience…

Stand up. With a point. And to the point. Highly Recommended.

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