Tortoisehead: The Alans Have Landed
Note: This review is from 2000
Despite their obvious talents as performers, this five-strong sketch team ultimately prove a disappointment.
Their characters are a strange mix of the tiresomely familiar, such as the real-ale loving corduroy-clad pub bores of the title, and the desperately zany, like comic-book hero Super Cervix ,who saves the world with her furry box.
Though not entirely bereft of good ideas, the TortoiseHead team consistently fail to make enough capital on their original brainwaves.
Running jokes are especially poor, all too clearly demonstrating the limitations of the characters.
But what makes this show so frustrating is that the team are clearly capable of better things. A musical Steps spoof and the pay-off line from a hooded character that frequently spooks the stage are both fantastic, and a couple of other one-off sketches are quite close to the mark.
Overall, though, the script is a flimsy waste of the cast's performing ability, especially that of the versatile Pippa Hinchley, which is a real shame.
Review date: 1 Jan 2000
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett