Pleasance Dome
5-24 August
£12-£14
21.45
Reviewer : Mark ‘Divine’ Calvert
Note from the CEO – The PR company of Adam Riches didn’t like Mark’s gutsy, honest, & frankly quite entertaining review. So they start chucking their toys out the pram & asked me to take it down. I replied that this wasn’t possible, that everyone’s entitled to their opinion & that Mark simply could not get into the comedy of Mr Riches. There followed a series of threats from said PR company, which include;
1 – I’m afraid we can’t run the risk of booking press tickets for The Mumble if our clients are going to be met with such a lack of respect for their work. Obviously, I hope we can avoid canceling the rest and continue as we have been thanks a lot
2 – We’re going to cancel the outstanding tickets because we can’t trust that this won’t be repeated. In doing so, i am going to write to all the venue press offices and the Fringe press office to explain why. I am then going to write to other remaining press reps in Edinburgh to express our concerns about The Mumble, and explain the decisions we’ve taken. Alternatively – take the review down, and let’s not ruin a good thing.
3 – I hope that, when it comes to securing press tickets this year and in the future, you feel the moral stand you’ve taken in defense of the standards of writing in that review has been worth it.
At the end of the day, The Mumble is an honest website, designed to help would-be show-goers make an informed choice. We cannot be bullied out of our integrity.
Mumble Comedy 
I don’t think this is a brilliantly-written review, but having said that…
I’m a literary agent. I spend my time sending clients’ manuscripts to publishers. If I threw the toys out of the pram every time a publisher didn’t like a client’s book (they are usually quite specific about why they don’t like a particular book), I would soon lose all credibility. Adam’s PR people only have to read the other reviews on this site to realise that we are serious about what we do. A reviewer is not a paid puff-writer, but is supposed to give an honest opinion. This review says what the reviewer thought of the show. End of.
Specifically about this comment:
“I am going to write to all the venue press offices and the Fringe press office to explain why. I am then going to write to other remaining press reps in Edinburgh to express our concerns about The Mumble, and explain the decisions we’ve taken.”
Whoever wrote that should check out Scottish Law on defamation before they do any such thing. Note I said ‘Scottish’ Law, it is different from the law in the rest of the UK.
Damo, the PR company is free to express its opinion to the venue press office and the Fringe press office, or to whomever, so long as it is not defamatory. However, I consider it to be entirely unreasonable for them to impugn the integrity of the whole site based on one unfavourable review. That would be completely disproportionate. If they do write, then The Mumble should lose no time in asking to see the letter(s) concerned and, in any case, writing to the same offices and pointing out that the PR company is complaining about one single review.
Sir, it is only possible to write a good review if the subject matter moves you. If a performance leaves you cold, our only retort would be either lie or offend. Adam Ritchie had a packed house & they loved him. I just wasn’t as impressed as the Audience, and when I sat down to write I was hit with a blank. The theatrical piece that I had reviewed prior to this show had been deeply moving with an important message. I was expecting something of a similar calibre & was ultimately dissapointed. But I get your drift. The key phrase relevant for all concerned is “Could Do Better”
It was an honest review. Can’t ask for more, mate!
This guy is not a comedian, sadly he thinks he is, the louder he shouts the more funny only he thinks he is.
His routine involves picking people from the audience and totally humiliating them in order to get a laugh from the rest of the audience, most clap so they don’t stand out and hopefully won’t be humiliated later in the show.
This guy is deluded!