Barry’s back in the old routine

Barry Cryer & Colin Sell, Saddleworth Festival, Saddleworth Civic Hall

HOURS of silliness by the master of mirth and his musical straight man ramped up the heat at the festival - quite literally.

As the capacity audience enjoyed the A to Z of Barry Cryer's joke book, the temperature rose and the more the audience laughed, the warmer it became.

Cryer, the writer, comedian and TV star, has the knack of seamlessly switching from anecdote to joke to reminiscence as though he was chatting to the audience in the pub.

The names of people he has known, worked with or written for drop effortlessly into his friendly banter - Jimmy Tarbuck, Tommy Cooper, Ted Ray, Ronnie Corbett, Humphrey Littleton and Willie Rushton to name but a few.

Cryer became more crumpled and creased as the night, called the Butterfly Brain tour and sponsored by the Chronicle, went on - but the excellent Colin Sell looked as cool as a cucumber, down to his shiny patent shoes and spotless white cuffs as he played the piano for the jokey numbers.

The pair are well known for their BBC Radio Four appearances on I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue and Cryer and Sell pleased the fans in the audience with their one tune to the words of another routine - it was the Laughing Policeman sung to the Dambusters march - and reminiscences from the show.

Cryer is 76 but shows no signs of slowing down - another festival in Grassington is next on their list.

If you missed this one, try and get a ticket there but it will probably be another sell-out night for the pair.

JB