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An awesome and ridiculous film that leaves you thrilled beyond the point of your natural endurance
2012
Theatre
The show has suddenly become quite wonderful, and the galvanising factor is the terrific stage debut of Melanie C
Blood Brothers
Music
The British pop music industry may be eating itself but if Muse are the pick of what it can offer the world in 2010 then British music is in rude health indeed
Muse
I was smitten by both Gilberts enormous luxuriant moustache and the intelligence and nuance of this highly entertaining play
I totally recommend Babbo to anyone who is looking for really good and traditional Italian food
Always been a fan but never seen them live. I was ecstatic to be part of this epic event. WOW!
London,
Bruce Dessau's rating
Reader rating
Description: The US sitcom star returns to her hard-hitting stand-up roots.
Trains: Tube: Leicester Square, Embankment 
Phone: 0844847 2475
Website: www.leicestersquaretheatre.com
Internet date: Roseanne Barr modestly describes herself as 'shy but assertive'
The last time Roseanne Barr appeared in the UK, in 2006, she delivered a pancake-flat set at the Leicester Comedy Festival. Rumour had it that she thought the booking was in Leicester Square, not 102 miles further north. Last night she was definitely in the right place, geographically and comedically. After the fiasco of fellow American Sarah Silverman’s Sunday gig, Barr showed herself to be an experienced old hand at stand-up.
In fact, age was the overriding theme of her defiant set. With her constant references to being a baby boomer, audience members over 40 got the most out of the rebellious black-clad 56-year-old’s sarcastic moans about troublesome teens, menopausal woes and below-the-waist cosmetic surgery.
Her despair at the state of the planet, however, appealed to everyone. After a few inevitable swipes at Bush and Palin, the sitcom icon aired her contempt for politics in general. “The only time they tell the truth is when they are calling each other liars.”
She is an Obama fan, though would probably have preferred Hillary Clinton.
If Barr aimed at well-worn targets, at least she hit mostly bulls-eyes, skewering the modern obsession with pills for all occasions and revealing how after three failed marriages she has recently tried internet dating, calling herself, somewhat understatedly, “shy but assertive”.
As for body fascism, she is not the first person to note that half the world is starving while the other half is dieting, yet it was still a persuasively spat‑out line.
This was no‑frills stand‑up with wicked smirks and a pithy wind-down in which she answered audience questions with such smart whipcrack comebacks one wondered whether she had a team of writers lurking under her blouse. A closing musical medley was a tad indulgent and a few American references drew blank expressions but this was hugely efficient, intermittently thrilling stuff.
Tonight (0844 847 2475,
www.leicestersquaretheatre.com).
Details are correct at the time of publication - please check with venue before booking.
Offer: Roseanne Barr tickets - Leicester Square Theatre - October 21 & 22 - £15 off*
Price: £30.00
Details: One of America's funniest comedians.
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* Online booking only
