Latest news with #Mischief
Evening Standard
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Evening Standard
The Comedy About Spies at Noel Coward Theatre review: bungling, buffoonish hilarity
Mischief has a diehard following that's stuck with them through Peter Pan Goes Wrong, The Comedy About a Bank Robbery, Mischief Movie Night and the deeply unimpressive Groan-Ups and Magic Goes Wrong, which together kicked off an ill-fated residency at the Vaudeville in 2019. I confess I've previously been baffled by the appeal of their broad, knockabout humour, even in PTGW, which I saw some years and several cast-changes into its run, when it seemed technically proficient but tired, its jollity forced.
The Guardian
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
The Comedy About Spies review – rapid fire gags in a delightfully silly show
'Vodka martini.' 'Shaken?' 'Yes, but I'll be fine.' If groanworthy jokes of that calibre float your boat, The Comedy About Spies, set in early 1960s London, will be plain sailing. Even if they don't, that needn't put you off: the new show from Mischief, the company behind the smash-hit … Goes Wrong series, also offers farce, slapstick and multiple callbacks. So much of the script relies on linguistic misunderstandings (sweet/suite, need/knead, etc) that even the most tolerant viewer may become homophone-phobic. The nonsense, orchestrated by director Matt DiCarlo, kicks off immediately with secret agents confusingly named after letters of the alphabet ('Not U – you!'). We then jump to the art deco lobby of the Piccadilly Hotel where MI6, the CIA and the KGB are trying to get their hands on the mysterious Project Midnight. Among those caught up in the tangle of mistaken identities are a milquetoast baker and a blustering thespian hoping to be cast in Dr No as 'Ooh-Seven'. A predisposition to the gag-rate of Airplane! will boost enjoyment, though The Comedy About Spies is fast-paced enough to make that film seem positively Beckettian. I was crying helpless tears of laughter within the first five minutes, and at several other moments throughout, not least during a line about a haunted leaflet that would take a paragraph to explain. The damp-squib gags tend to be eclipsed by the dynamite ones, with a single exception: a vulgar running joke about a veteran CIA agent thrilled by the prospect of a threesome with her own son rather sours the jolly mood. David Farley's doll's-house-style cross-section set, which splits the hotel into colour-coded quarters in the first act, is glorious, but his designs grow fussy and over-dressed in act two and leave one craving the ingenious minimalism of Operation Mincemeat. The depth of emotion in that similarly silly show is also absent here, making The Comedy About Spies a more mechanical endeavour. Except, that is, for actor and co-writer Henry Lewis's poignant final line reading, which bestows dignity on to a character (the Bond wannabe) who has been a buffoon throughout. This time, there were tears in my eyes for a different reason. At the Noël Coward theatre, London, until 5 September
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
The 10 greatest spies ever seen on screen
The name's Lewis. Henry Lewis. As the artistic director of Mischief – the team behind The Comedy About Spies, which is about to open in the West End – I've got secret agents on the brain. If I compiled a list of the 10 greatest ever seen, who would be on it? (They are all fictional, since the top spies in the real world are so good at what they do that we have no clue who they are.) What even makes a spy a spy? Jack Ryan certainly does some spying, but technically he's a CIA analyst. Inspector Gadget may well look the part, but I'm told officially that he's a 'bionic detective'. So, I've had Q check my working and am confident that the 10 secret agents below all qualify as especially espionagious. The Men in Black: secret agents who specialise in extraterrestrials. Efficiently wiping the memories of pretty much everyone they encounter after they've completed a job, they can afford to be extremely relaxed about concealing their identities (providing they don't forget to remember their memory-wipers). The Men in Black can pull off sunglasses indoors and at night, and also have their fingerprints removed, which helps guard their anonymity and leaves fewer smudges. Webb is the character played by Keira Knightley in the recent Netflix spy thriller Black Doves, one of the best 'also a Christmas story' stories since Die Hard. A Black Dove gives information to a mercenary organisation that then buys and sells said information – so there are lots of double- and triple-crossings to be had, which are a huge requirement of the genre. Webb's motivation is, quite healthily, revenge. She is cold, savage, ruthless and often finds herself covered in blood, but in an extremely likeable way. Voiced by David Jason, Danger Mouse is an agent with the British Secret Service, and together with his hamster friend Penfold has foiled a record number of world-domination plots, sometimes in as little as five minutes. For a full list of the spy mouse's accolades, look no further than his theme tune, which reliably informs us that he is not only 'the greatest' and 'the strongest', but also that 'he's the fastest, he's the quickest, he's the best', and 'wherever there is danger, he'll be there'. Pretty impressive stuff, if you ask me. Remember his initials because they're going to come up again. Jason Bourne is the code name for Matt Damon's CIA spy and assassin, known for being incredibly resourceful. Why carry a gun when you can use a pen? Or a magazine? Or an extension cable? Bourne doesn't need Q to hide weapons in gadgets and clothing, he can just pick up the nearest object and do some real damage. He's so cool and collected, the loss of all his memories is seen as only a minor setback. It's one thing to fight your way through villain after villain every single week. It's another to do it all while wearing flared jeans. Charlie's Angels features three women working as spy investigators, sent out on missions by mysterious millionaire Charlie – and they get the job done in true 1970s style. They receive their assignments from a disembodied voice and have access to a seemingly endless supply of disguises. They also have easily the funkiest theme tune on this list, which goes a long way in the spy world. Surprisingly nothing to do with the separate Marvel character 'Spider-Woman', Black Widow, aka Natasha Romanoff, is a Russian spy-turned-founding Avengers member. Looking at the rest of her team, she's definitely the only one who could feasibly blend in as a spy; you'd need a lot of trench-coat material for the Hulk. Played by Scarlett Johannson, Black Widow is adept in the traditional spy disciplines of speaking multiple languages, sharpshooting and martial arts, as well as the less traditional disciplines of stabbing aliens, defeating robots and maintaining flawless hair and make-up throughout. In 24, Kiefer Sutherland's rugged, get-the-job-done-by-any-means-necessary Jack Bauer is the Counter Terrorist Unit's ultimate secret weapon. His number-one superpower – beyond also sporting the initials J and B – is being able to effectively thwart ANY terrorist plot in just shy of 24 hours (but, admittedly, not any sooner than that). I believe he also holds the record for the TV character zip-tied to the most objects, usually whatever the villains happen to have to hand – metal pipes, radiators, the president's arm. Disarmer of bombs, container of chemical weapons, kicker of locked doors... Bauer remains unflappable in the face of unexpected developments occurring one minute before the hour, every hour – what a day! Rowan Atkinson's clumsy MI7 agent consistently proves that he is the only man for the job... when no others are available. Fully embracing the fact he is a pure James Bond spoof, Johnny English is able to lean in to all the aspects of spy fiction that are actually a bit ridiculous when you stop to really think about them: the over-the-top gadgets (explosive jelly baby, anyone?); the stylish cars that stick out far more than they blend in; and the outlandish villain schemes (his original nemesis, Pascal Sauvage, wants to be the new king, no less). Ultimately, English's greatest superpower is his inability to admit his mistakes, even if it means staging a fight with an imaginary assailant just to cover them up. We've all been there. In Phineas and Ferb, Perry belongs to the Flynn-Fletcher family, who see him as a totally normal domesticated pet. But he lives a secret double life as a member of the espionage agency OWCA (Organisation Without a Cool Acronym). Not only have Perry's infamous battles with the evil Dr Doofenshmirtz comfortably embedded them both in the pop-culture zeitgeist, but he has also increased public awareness of the key characteristics of the platypus species – such as their turquoise colour, their fedora hats and their ability to fight crime. Ian Fleming's MI6 agent is the spy that all other spies must ultimately measure up to, so it's no surprise that his gadgets, his cars, his cat-stroking, spinny-chair villains, even his initials – J and B, once again! – are so often mimicked by those who came later. Perhaps there was a fictional spy before Bond, and Bond did such a good job of taking them out and covering it up that we just assume Bond was the original. Bond's most remarkable achievement is that he somehow manages still to be an excellent spy despite always immediately revealing his real name. 'The name's Bond. James Bond' is a catchphrase as unforgettable as he is, though it rather blows his cover. The Comedy About Spies is at the Noël Coward Theatre, London WC2 ( until Sept 5 Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
10-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
The 10 greatest spies ever seen on screen
The name's Lewis. Henry Lewis. As the artistic director of Mischief – the team behind The Comedy About Spies, which is about to open in the West End – I've got secret agents on the brain. If I compiled a list of the 10 greatest ever seen, who would be on it? (They are all fictional, since the top spies in the real world are so good at what they do that we have no clue who they are.) What even makes a spy a spy? Jack Ryan certainly does some spying, but technically he's a CIA analyst. Inspector Gadget may well look the part, but I'm told officially that he's a 'bionic detective'. So, I've had Q check my working and am confident that the 10 secret agents below all qualify as especially espionagious. 10. Agent J The Men in Black: secret agents who specialise in extraterrestrials. Efficiently wiping the memories of pretty much everyone they encounter after they've completed a job, they can afford to be extremely relaxed about concealing their identities (providing they don't forget to remember their memory-wipers). The Men in Black can pull off sunglasses indoors and at night, and also have their fingerprints removed, which helps guard their anonymity and leaves fewer smudges. 9. Helen Webb Webb is the character played by Keira Knightley in the recent Netflix spy thriller Black Doves, one of the best 'also a Christmas story' stories since Die Hard. A Black Dove gives information to a mercenary organisation that then buys and sells said information – so there are lots of double- and triple-crossings to be had, which are a huge requirement of the genre. Webb's motivation is, quite healthily, revenge. She is cold, savage, ruthless and often finds herself covered in blood, but in an extremely likeable way. 8. Danger Mouse Voiced by David Jason, Danger Mouse is an agent with the British Secret Service, and together with his hamster friend Penfold has foiled a record number of world-domination plots, sometimes in as little as five minutes. For a full list of the spy mouse's accolades, look no further than his theme tune, which reliably informs us that he is not only 'the greatest' and 'the strongest', but also that 'he's the fastest, he's the quickest, he's the best', and 'wherever there is danger, he'll be there'. Pretty impressive stuff, if you ask me. 7. Jason Bourne Remember his initials because they're going to come up again. Jason Bourne is the code name for Matt Damon's CIA spy and assassin, known for being incredibly resourceful. Why carry a gun when you can use a pen? Or a magazine? Or an extension cable? Bourne doesn't need Q to hide weapons in gadgets and clothing, he can just pick up the nearest object and do some real damage. He's so cool and collected, the loss of all his memories is seen as only a minor setback. 6. Charlie's Angels It's one thing to fight your way through villain after villain every single week. It's another to do it all while wearing flared jeans. Charlie's Angels features three women working as spy investigators, sent out on missions by mysterious millionaire Charlie – and they get the job done in true 1970s style. They receive their assignments from a disembodied voice and have access to a seemingly endless supply of disguises. They also have easily the funkiest theme tune on this list, which goes a long way in the spy world. 5. Black Widow Surprisingly nothing to do with the separate Marvel character 'Spider-Woman', Black Widow, aka Natasha Romanoff, is a Russian spy-turned-founding Avengers member. Looking at the rest of her team, she's definitely the only one who could feasibly blend in as a spy; you'd need a lot of trench-coat material for the Hulk. Played by Scarlett Johannson, Black Widow is adept in the traditional spy disciplines of speaking multiple languages, sharpshooting and martial arts, as well as the less traditional disciplines of stabbing aliens, defeating robots and maintaining flawless hair and make-up throughout. 4. Jack Bauer In 24, Kiefer Sutherland's rugged, get-the-job-done-by-any-means-necessary Jack Bauer is the Counter Terrorist Unit's ultimate secret weapon. His number-one superpower – beyond also sporting the initials J and B – is being able to effectively thwart ANY terrorist plot in just shy of 24 hours (but, admittedly, not any sooner than that). I believe he also holds the record for the TV character zip-tied to the most objects, usually whatever the villains happen to have to hand – metal pipes, radiators, the president's arm. Disarmer of bombs, container of chemical weapons, kicker of locked doors... Bauer remains unflappable in the face of unexpected developments occurring one minute before the hour, every hour – what a day! 3. Johnny English Rowan Atkinson's clumsy MI7 agent consistently proves that he is the only man for the job... when no others are available. Fully embracing the fact he is a pure James Bond spoof, Johnny English is able to lean in to all the aspects of spy fiction that are actually a bit ridiculous when you stop to really think about them: the over-the-top gadgets (explosive jelly baby, anyone?); the stylish cars that stick out far more than they blend in; and the outlandish villain schemes (his original nemesis, Pascal Sauvage, wants to be the new king, no less). Ultimately, English's greatest superpower is his inability to admit his mistakes, even if it means staging a fight with an imaginary assailant just to cover them up. We've all been there. 2. Perry the Platypus In Phineas and Ferb, Perry belongs to the Flynn-Fletcher family, who see him as a totally normal domesticated pet. But he lives a secret double life as a member of the espionage agency OWCA (Organisation Without a Cool Acronym). Not only have Perry's infamous battles with the evil Dr Doofenshmirtz comfortably embedded them both in the pop-culture zeitgeist, but he has also increased public awareness of the key characteristics of the platypus species – such as their turquoise colour, their fedora hats and their ability to fight crime. 1. James Bond Ian Fleming's MI6 agent is the spy that all other spies must ultimately measure up to, so it's no surprise that his gadgets, his cars, his cat-stroking, spinny-chair villains, even his initials – J and B, once again! – are so often mimicked by those who came later. Perhaps there was a fictional spy before Bond, and Bond did such a good job of taking them out and covering it up that we just assume Bond was the original. Bond's most remarkable achievement is that he somehow manages still to be an excellent spy despite always immediately revealing his real name. 'The name's Bond. James Bond' is a catchphrase as unforgettable as he is, though it rather blows his cover.
Yahoo
03-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Meet Mischief, the fearless cat going viral after making an entire city his home
Cats are free-spirited animals. Most of them come and go as they please, wander around the block and pop into their neighbours' gardens. However, one particularly adventurous cat from Plymouth has taken things to another level, prowling around for miles and visiting pubs, supermarkets, a school and even the city's naval base. Mischief's antics have been winning over the hearts of locals for years now, but after featuring on a TikTok video that has been viewed more than 6 million times, the exploring feline is gaining a legion of fans from around the world. New fans of Mischief's from outside the UK have been introducing themselves on the "Mischief's adventures in Plymouth", with one follower from Texas saying she will "keep her eyes peeled" should the cat decide to stowaway on a ship one day. Others now keeping track of his whereabouts include people from California, Phoenix and een Switzerland. He's even made the news in the US, with WIVB News in Buffalo, New York, reporting on his escapades. Followers of Mischief have put together a map showing all the places Mischief has been, and he sure does get around. The aptly named Mischief was once spotted in the grounds of Devonport High School for Boys before entering a year 7 science class, much to the delight of students. One video shows students at City College Plymouth playing with Mischief, one of whom can be heard asking: "Oh look, he followed us. Can we keep him?" He also stopped by to show his support for a local netball team, with one player posting on Facebook: "Greeting our team at netball tonight. He really is such a lovely friendly cat. A lovely start to our training. Plymouth local Phoebe Margaret wasn't even aware of Mischief's celebrity status when she found the cat sitting in the front seat of her car in May last year. "This was him trying to hitchhike in my car on Millbridge this morning. Had to pretend I had some treats to lure him out," she wrote. Mischief has also been seen prowling the aisles of Plymouth's supermarkets and newsagents and searching for building supplies at a local Jewsons. Ever the style-icon, the cat has also been spotted outside the Ray-Ban shop in Plymouth's Drake Circus shopping centre. Mischief has been spotted rubbing shoulders with locals at a number of Plymouth's pubs, a Ladbrokes bookmakers, and even a Slimming World meeting. He's made himself at home in other people's living rooms, a Post Office and is said to have visited a vets on his own accord. The wandering feline is even thought to have got into Plymouth's naval base on two occasions – presumably without needing security clearance. Mischief has become a well-known and well-loved character around Plymouth, but his antics do get him into trouble from time to time. In 2023, his owner, Tonie Blackmore, told the Plymouth Herald how she has to ground him sometimes if he wanders off too far, but Mischief clearly doesn't like to stay in the same place for too long. "I have to remind him he has a home. He'll sit peeking out the blinds salty because he can't go out," Blackmore said. "I got back from the shop the other day and his whole head was out the kitchen blind." She added: "I've lost track of how many times I've picked him up, I must pick him up at least once or twice a fortnight." Click below to see the latest South West headlines Read more Cat caught on camera using a toilet like people (Wales Online) 'Crufts for cats' Catstravaganza competition coming to Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park (My London) Can dogs catch norovirus? Vet explains after human cases explode (Wales Online)
