Socks Address The Haggis

"Sonsie - rhymes with Beyonce" The Scottish Falsetto Sock Puppet Theatre give the Address To The Haggis (photo courtesy of Alan Anderson)

Thanks to the Prince & Princess Hospice Glasgow for having the Socks do the Address to the Haggis last night at the Hilton. Loved it and, luckily, so did the (count em) 600 punters. The Socks performance was projected on the big screens behind us and I'd love to get a copy of it. We'll see. In the meantime I got some photos of the amazing Karen Dunbar, Alan Anderson, Peter Martin, Viv Lumsden and Libby McArthur. Yes, I know. Socks were on that Burns Celebration bill. Braw.



And here (above) is Karen Dunbar doing her amazing Tam O'Shanter. Brought the house down, to a standing ovation, the most incredible performance. I've found a clip of Karen doing it on TV a few years ago, which is very flat compared to the electric rendition she gave last night. If you ever get the chance to see her do it, you simply must.

Fun notes from the night: Talking to River City star Libby McArthur, who gave the Response to the Laddies speech brilliantly, I learn that she was a teenage pop star, being a founder member of the band Sophisticated Boom Boom, who had a few John Peel sessions and appeared on The Tube. This is them doing their biggest almost-hit Courage.

And courtesy of Alan Anderson, who gave a sterling Toast To The Lassies, we all learned that Karen Dunbar once had a job as a face painter. Earlier in the afternoon Alan had asked Facebook friends for ideas for face painter gags and I was rather pleased with the ones I came up with:

I took my kid to the face painter. I said can you make her look like she's a lion? So she made her look like Tony Blair #facepaintergags

So he paints my kids face orange with black stripes and makes her neck five feet long. I said are you having a giraffe? #facepaintergags

I ask for a clown. He paints an exact copy of my kid's face on another kid's face. No, not clone! #facepaintergags

... so I gave him a Picasso. He's got a nose on the side of his face now. #facepaintergags

Went to the face painter. He took my money and just ran off. Turned out he was a two faced painter. #facepaintergags

I said can you make my kids look like something from the jungle? He turned them into Ant & Dec. #facepaintergags

Then he starts painting my kid to look like Mo Farah. I thought, he's about to do a runner. #facepaintergags

He starts painting a BA Hons Degree certificate on my kids face. I thought, that's a first. #facepaintergags

He starts doing Violet Carson off of Coronation Street, really low down on the kid's face. I said, no I wanted a hyena. #facepaintergags

He starts painting a badger, then another badger, then another badger. I thought, he's going to do a set. #facepaintergags

Alan, understandably, didn't use any of those gags. The Socks might have the start of a new routine though.



The Scottish Falsetto Sock Puppet Theatre are on tour... NOW!

Jan 25 2014 - Rondo, Bath
Feb 12 - Comedy Den Cardiff
Feb 14 - Leicester Comedy Festival
Feb 22 - Aberystwyth Arts Centre
Mar 15 - Largs Barrfields Pavilion
Mar 20, 21 - Dram, Glasgow
Mar 22 - Spread Eagle, Croydon
Mar 29 - Kings Lynn Arts Centre
Apr 3 - Adam Smith Theatre Kirkcaldy
Apr 12 - Stroud Subscription Rooms
May 9 - Exeter Barnfield
May 17 - Brighton Komedia
May 23 - Keighley Exchange
May 31 - Aylesbury Limelight
June 8 - Butlins, Bognor
June 19 - Phoenix Arts, Bordon Hants
June 20 - Derby Live
June 21 - Halifax Square Chapel
June 22 - Derby (family show)
More dates to be announced
August - Edinburgh Fringe 2014