He makes it seem so easy. If push came to shove, Arthur Smith could probably confine himself to reading the minutes of Oxfordshire County Council’s transport sub-committee and still send his listeners home happy.
Once upon a time, perhaps, this corner of the Home Counties might have been alien territory: Smith still can’t help being bemused by the local newspaper’s report of a Pooh Sticks competition. But otherwise his long association with Radio 4 and BBC Two’s Grumpy Old Men has created a bond with middle-aged audiences everywhere.
That almost no one in the room was a fan of Nick Clegg brought performer and public even closer, although Smith’s observations on politics don’t extend far beyond a vague disdain for the Tories, c 1980. Nick Robinson, the Beeb’s man outside No 10, came in for a mild rubbishing too.
Like its forerunners, Smith’s latest show is a genial, rambling affair, the well-crafted one-liners mixed with readings from his autobiography, My Name is Daphne Fairfax, a couple of impersonations of Leonard Cohen (over-long, really, but we didn’t mind indulging him) and some sprightly swing era vocals from his young guests, the Segue Sisters.
Abingdon Guildhall can hardly have been the easiest of venues to play: the ambience was weirdly redolent of a school assembly and the lighting flickered so often that Smith may have wondered if he were being subjected to an insidious form of silent heckling. Within ten minutes, though, his relaxed patter and self-deprecating persona had generated the illusion that we were tucked away in the snuggest of clubs.
Advertisement
Smith’s timing is always a marvel to behold. There is, too, an intriguing contrast between his throwaway, taxi-driver chat and the more self-consciously literary tone of the readings. It would have been easy to milk the Grumpy Old Man connection. He certainly harvested a healthy and very witty crop of written moans from the audience during the interval. Yet he has plenty of other weapons in his arsenal. In his own chaotic way, he has become a Renaissance Man.
Broxbourne Civic Hall, Thurs; Citizens Theatre, Glasgow, Sat. Full tour details: arthursmith.co.uk