Simon Mc Kinney has had me laughing for the past hour. I’ve chosen to sit in awkward spot behind a tall person and now I find myself ‘playing peek- a- boo’ trying to see where Mc Kinney is on stage.  I am engrossed.

He is hilarious with his library of impersonations and pitch perfect accents that have got me crying from laughing so hard. He’s taken a jab at the ‘Kiwi woman’s’ accent, surely we don’t sound that bad, do we? I see husbands and partners around the room ribbing their fairer halves and not one woman is standing up for her lingual rights; sadly I think there’s some truth in it.

Life and locals in Edinburgh get the spotlight as do the supposed ‘similarities’ between the Kiwi’s and Scottish. His parents must be very proud of his proficiency in taking the proverbial. I could quite easily get drunk on his banter, he’s that funny I feel euphoric.

Simon McKinney is performing at the Transmission Room in Auckland City, if your comedy quota is deficient of silly faces and funny impersonations, Mc Kinney’s is the show to see.
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Simon McKinney’s 2009 show is entitled ‘Simon McKinney Tells a Bit of A Yarn’ and that is exactly what he does.  The audience is welcomed into the comfortable and inviting Fringe Bar and made to feel as warm and relaxed as if in their own living room, while Simon regales them with a long series of anecdotes. The only thing missing is the roaring log fire.

McKinney’s tale chiefly consists of his experiences on his OE, a lone New Zealander adrift in the British Isles.  This framework gives McKinney ample opportunity to utilise his prime talent, an uncanny gift for voices and mimicry.  In his travels overseas McKinney has perfected a range of Scottish and English accents and we are treated to cameo appearances by such characters as the British fop, the Scottish fisherman, and the New Zealand housewife desperately seeking ‘eeeggs’.

As a comic McKinney is a pleasure to watch.  He is relaxed, professional, his engaging and affable manner born of confidence in his material and his relationship with the audience.  We never have to secretly squirm as we watch the performer on stage flail in the spotlight. McKinney is in his element, and clearly more than happy to have a room full of people watching him.

The flipside of this assurance is its indication that the comic is not stepping outside of his comfort zone. Simon McKinney does not take any risks; his performance is so slick as to be almost impersonal.   His routine is so well structured and thought out that there is little room within it for snappy improvisation and live banter – I imagine this show will play the same every night.

Simon McKinney is a talented performer and comedian who has a sharp set of skills which he knows how to use.  Having spent a decade polishing and honing these talents his show is never going to disappoint. It would be exciting to see him push his limits in his next routine – but ‘Simon McKinney Tells a Yarn’ is well worth catching, any Kiwi who has travelled overseas will relate to this. The man does a damn fine accent.
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