Whether swearing on daytime television or revealing her latest nip and tuck, Joan Rivers is regularly the centre of attention. And in her latest appearance the 75-year-old icon is most definitely in the limelight, grabbing all the best lines. But then she did cowrite this bizarre yet compelling hybrid of autobiography, play and stand-up.

Anyone hoping for conventional theatre last night soon had their expectations trampled. Rivers immediately addressed the audience directly and throughout proceedings slipped into filthy stand-up mode, sticking the Manolo Blahniks into the likes of Russell Crowe, Sophia Loren and Victoria "does this tampon make me look fat?" Beckham. Some gags were nearly as old as Rivers, yet she spat them out with such venom they still merited a laugh.

The setting is the dressing room on Oscars night. Rivers is preparing for her annual red carpet commentary with her assistant and make-up artist while telling her life story, from playing Barbra Streisand's lesbian lover to directing her only movie to finally making it big. However, something is afoot. You can tell how much the network likes you by the cheese plate. Favoured employees get brie. Tonight, to her horror, she has Dairylea slices.

There are shocks for the audience too, during moments of high drama. Loyal fans should already know about her husband Edgar's suicide and the incident when her mentor Johnny Carson dropped her like a stone, but the way she slowly, movingly delivers these anecdotes is literally showstopping. Giggles turned to jaw-drop silence as she recalled these extraordinary events.

Above all this story is about surviving in an industry where youth is the ultimate commodity. As she talks of nobody going to Mae West's funeral because she "outlived her fame" it is clear that Rivers is determined to avoid the same fate. Every time she has been knocked down she has fought back and she is not about to give up now. If the energy dips slightly towards the end, that is understandable given the star's age. And if her face is not the most mobile we know why that is. Yet somehow, reasonably reined in by director Sean Foley, this works. Maybe because it is all true. According to Rivers she does not dare lie in case her old nose grows back.

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