I admit to being a little sceptical about building a show around a haircut, but Maisie Adam won me round. We all crossed boundaries during lockdown and cutting one’s own hair has to be up there as an activity that challenged a few of us. We’re not just talking the fringe, (hair terms here) but taking the clippers for an all over change of style is not for the faint-hearted.
Maisie has a wonderful sense of surprise about her own actions – from the impromptu haircut to scoring a goal in a well-known television football programme. Her genuine delight in her own successes is infectious and we’re rarely laugh-free throughout this joyful hour celebrating life and love.
She starts out by telling her comedy story with a warm frankness that pays tribute to the opportunities that have come her way. And her wonderment at the recognition she’s achieved in a relatively short time, barring the two years of pandemic restrictions, is infectious. This renders Maisie as an infinitely likeable performer whose description of how her boyfriend proposed to her on a holiday in Prague is delivered with such modesty and self-deprecation, you end up loving her as much as he obviously does.
Maisie has been rightly fast-tracked since winning So You Think You’re Funny and making it through to the Funny Women Stage Award final in 2017. These accolades have given her the benefit of being seen and heard relatively early in her comedy career.
If we get a choice about how our comedy is served up then I’m very happy to have what she’s having! Maisie is a warm bubbly dish of relatable comedy. I left the room feeling embraced by her humour and part of her extended comedy family.
With her open heart and a haircut that is symbolic of her exuberance, we’ll be seeing a lot more of Maisie. She is living her very own dream and her inevitable onward success on stage and screen is richly deserved. I can’t wait to see the wedding pictures!
★★★★★
Maisie Adam: Buzzed is at the Gilded Balloon Teviot, Dining Room at 17:30 until 28th August. For tickets visit EdFringe.com.
