★★★★

“a mad scientist lair with an unexpectedly polished West End finish”

As someone who grew up watching Brainiac on TV, I was curious to see how this explosive, cheeky science show would translate to the stage. But ‘Brainiac Live’ doesn’t disappoint – bursting with fun, physics and literal fire, it’s a great family show that keeps kids enthralled from start to finish.

Walking in, you’re met with a gleefully chaotic array of equipment – from radioactive barrels and hazard tape, to hot water bottles and deck chairs – a clear sign you’re in for a wild ride! Through a slick blend of experiments, videos and high energy performance, this snappy show keeps you on your toes and teaches you something too.

With original creative contributions by Ben Keaton and writing by Andy Joyce, the show is surprisingly funny and slick. The energy is kept high with rapid fire dialogue and ample audience interaction – the screaming, cheering and booing hardly needs encouragement. Though aimed at kids, the adults in the audience aren’t forgotten with jokes and references for them too. The comedy is largely physical, though the misheard lyrics section is delightfully silly and fun. The experiments are genuinely impressive and entertaining, even if they lean on big bangs which upsets a couple of kids – but explosive science is part of the Brainiac bargain!

Joyce’s direction keeps the energy high and the pacing snappy, each Brainiac high kicking onto the stage, and whipping the crowd into claps, cheers and competitions. The experiments are engaging – if sometimes loud – while punchy video segments mean you barely notice ’Brainiac Dave’ (i.e. Stage Management) expertly resetting the stage. Moments of unexpected silliness – such as the ‘Single Ladies’ bit complete with smoke and leotards – establish this as entertainment first and science demo second, though they blend seamlessly. A great example of making science fun!

Jack Andrews’ Brainiac Ned (a role shared with Joyce) keeps things zipping along expertly, with big, bouncy energy for the kids plus sharp comic timing for the adults. Andrews keeps the audience hooked throughout. Rik Warren gives Brainiac Ed a stoic but silly charm, opening with the strong, silent treatment before busting out some hilarious moves. Tracy Rahi’s Brainiac Raz completes the trio with real gusto. A cameo from Madison Grace sets the edgy tone early, and dramatic voiceovers from Odinn Orn Hilmarsson keep things moving.

Hilmarsson’s video editing, paired with GDL’s artwork, design and animations, give the video segments a really polished feel, boosting both the educational and entertainment value without ever feeling like filler. Additional design by Damien Stanton and Charlotte Paveley, including hazardous waste debris, playful lighting and slick sound design, builds a mad scientist lair with an unexpectedly polished West End finish.

Catch ‘Brainiac Live’ this summer – it’s big fun and bigger bangs, a perfect pick for kids who don’t mind a bit of noise.

HERE COMES J EDGAR!

King’s Head Theatre

★★★★

“As history, it’s candy-coated; as theatre, it’s a joy: an immaculately performed comedy”

The all-singing, all-dancing Here Comes J. Edgar! lifts the veil on what secrets a man must keep to satiate the power of love and the love of power.

J. Edgar Hoover was the most feared man in twentieth-century America. Founder of the modern FBI, he was the blackmailer-in-chief whose filing cabinets kept a succession of presidents awake at night. Here Comes J. Edgar! gives him the full Technicolor musical comedy treatment. This is the Disneyfied version of the Hoover story: the surveillance, the secret files, the whispers about his ‘life-time assistant’, about dresses and strands of pearls, all rendered in the bright, brassy idiom of golden-age Broadway. The point is made that his own underworld connections led to the FBI shifting focus from organized crime to ‘anti-Communism’. The audience can join the dots regarding how that might have contributed to modern America’s underbelly. But the show would much rather you tapped your foot. Mostly, you can’t resist.

The pedigree is extraordinary. Book and lyrics are by Harry Shearer (This Is Spinal Tap, The Simpsons) and Tom Leopold (Seinfeld, Cheers), with music by the late Peter Matz, arranger of Barbra Streisand’s early albums and musical director of The Carol Burnett Show. The evening gives ‘mid-century Broadway heyday’ in spades thanks to director Josh Seymour and Olivier-winning choreographer Bill Deamer. The intimate King’s Head auditorium turns it up close and personal.

At the centre, making his London debut, Bryan Batt is outstanding. Best known as Mad Men’s Salvatore Romano, Batt is a Broadway veteran, and it shows. His Hoover is preening, vain, dangerous and yet touching, a monster who believes himself to be the hero. Batt relishes the part.

He is surrounded by a great ensemble. Hugo Bolton makes a devoted, wounded Clyde Tolson. Marc Elliott rattles through Walter Winchell’s staccato gossip with glee; Laura Medforth veers between poise and barely restrained sexual frustration as Helen Gandy, keeper of the files; and Judith Owen brings smoky authority to the Lady in Red. The production looks a treat (set, Sophia Pardon; costumes, Tom Paris; lighting, Jamie Platt; sound, Nick Lodge), all sequinned with a G-man’s edge.

Matz’s score is generous to a fault: the numbers keep coming. The pastiche is affectionate and expertly built. Ben Ferguson’s orchestrations keep it all fizzing. However, ballad is laid upon ballad to the point where a red editing pen could be deployed to good effect. The other issue keeping the fifth star locked in the filing cabinet is the lack of a single showstopper to send you out, humming along Upper Street.

But what timing for the show’s opening! The machine created by J. Edgar Hoover has surfaced in the rumour mill’s eerily similar functioning surrounding another powerful, long-standing, homophobic American political figure who died last week. Indeed, an American musical this pointed taking its world premiere in Islington rather than New York may be the evening’s driest joke of all.

As history, it’s candy-coated; as theatre, it’s a joy: an immaculately performed comedy.

Tag Archives: Mark Douet

BRAINIAC LIVE

★★★★

Garrick Theatre

BRAINIAC LIVE

Garrick Theatre

★★★★

“a mad scientist lair with an unexpectedly polished West End finish”

BRAINIAC LIVE

Garrick Theatre

Reviewed on 28th July 2026

by Hannah Bothelton

Photography by Mark Douet

BRAINIAC

BRAINIAC

BRAINIAC

HERE COMES J EDGAR!

★★★★

King’s Head Theatre

HERE COMES J EDGAR!

King’s Head Theatre

★★★★

“As history, it’s candy-coated; as theatre, it’s a joy: an immaculately performed comedy”