Tom Neenan is a writer who through Covid redirected his creativity into portrait painting.
Here in a one-man show he tells the story of a sitter who wanted to be painted with a chest of medals. It was not that he had been in any wars, they were to symbolise the psychological battles he has won. Here Neenan presents us with a series of anecdotes which reflect his personal mental health skirmishes.
Neenan has a malleable face and a stance which would look good in music hall with ‘I say, I say, I say…’ and a succession of bad puns. He is agreeable and you will him to go on in an hour-long standup routine which riffs through such things as the difficulty of getting a good passport photo, his most hated chocolate bars and Picasso’s misogyny.
He makes self-consciously literary references to Chekhov, the unreliable narrator and leads like, ‘My next sentence gets worse with every successive word in it.’
‘Is this a theme or is it just the same word twice’ he muses in a writerly way.
This is funny and professionally delivered, the use of music in particular is smartly precise. However, none of the material would sound out of place in a Radio 4 comedy show. The exception is one excruciatingly good piece where Neenan, on a low ebb, calls the Samaritans to be rewarded with conversation with the Bad Samaritan, a socially superior woman who can find no reason for living. More spice like this would be welcome.
Neenan is very concerned to tell us these are true stories. His observations on portrait painting and failed creative endeavours are interesting, but they go only so far. I can’t help feeling that untrue and more extravagant anecdotes would be funnier.
Theatre: Jack Studio Theatre
Playwright: Tom Neenan
Cast: Tom Neenan
Duration: 60 minutes
Until: 11 July 2026 then Edinburgh Fringe