Susan Calman: This Lady's Not for Turning Either, Underbelly Bristo Square, Edinburgh

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Julian Hall Author Biography

Julian Hall

Julian has been the comedy critic for The Independent since 2003. He is also the author of The Rough Guide to British Cult Comedy, www.textualhealing.co.uk

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Monday 13 August 2012

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Small on stature but big on heart, the lawyer-turned-comic Susan Calman has made great strides in her career since her debut Fringe hour in 2008, making an impression on Have I Got News for You and various Radio 4 shows including The News Quiz and The Now Show.

Already in a civil partnership, Calman makes the case for gay marriage in this show. If her partner can love someone as flawed as she is, she argues, someone who dresses their cats in police uniforms for "Prime Suspect Day" for example, then who would dare deny the humanity of their union?

Describing how becoming a lawyer had "just made up for being a lesbian" to her parents (before she dropped the news that she was turning to comedy on them), Calman reveals how pragmatic they were about the news of the union. Her mother's subsequent wedding list suggestions bear this out (a mustard set is crucial for respectability, it turns out).

It's clear that Calman has the love of her folks, her partner, her cats and the audience. She nearly blows this goodwill, though, with an ending that is emotionally manipulative, albeit for all the right reasons.

To 27 August, not 14 (0844 545 8252)

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