Mr Swallow: Show Pony, Richmond Theatre review - magic tricks and mayhem

Nick Mohammed invented his Mr Swallow character – camp, lisping, with an inflated ego and the mistaken belief that he has creative talent – more than a decade ago, but he reached a new audience with his appearance as the good guy-goes-bad-then-good-again Nate in the lovely television comedy Ted Lasso.

Now’s he’s touring with Mr Swallow: Show Pony. Part-way through, something unexpected happens: Nick Mohammed takes over, while still in the guise of Mr Swallow. It’s a meta moment for sure, and slightly discombobulating, but it allows Mohammed to play with the character-within-a-character guise as he explains the inspiration for Mr Swallow. She was a teacher who taught him GCSE English and in the second half the stage is set as if it were the Leeds schoolroom where she ruled the roost.

This duality (which Mohammed negotiates adroitly throughout, particularly as he playfully examines racism within the TV industry) bodes well for Mohammed’s appearance on Celebrity Traitors later this year. He doesn’t reveal any secrets about his other contestants, but memorably describes the decor of the Scottish castle where it’s filmed as “Like if Dracula got all his stuff from Dunelm.”

The pace – as ever with Mr Swallow – is frantic, even if it dips when Mohammed recounts in detail his less than stellar spot at last year’s BAFTA film awards in front of a phalanx of Hollywood stars after a planned skit went awry (due to no fault of his own). This section feels a little like Mohammed needs to lay the experience to rest, but even then he manages to mine some great laughs – mostly at his own expense – from it.

The show has a high gag count; there’s a running joke about the age-appropriateness of LEGO products, and he references all sorts – from Toby Carveries, Phantom of the Opera, comics with ADHD and his love of Shloer drinks – as Mr Swallow’s butterfly mind jumps all around the place. 

The audience work is superb – even if an overly refreshed women nearly derailed one of the set pieces on the night I saw the show. But Mohammed, a genuinely charming man, dealt with her with aplomb. No matter, though, as Mr Swallow’s magic tricks – Mohammed is a member of the Magic Circle – continue to amaze.

The show, while tightly constructed, has a wonderfully loose feeling to it too, as if the comic is winging it. But of course he’s not, and Mr Swallow, as ever, takes flight.

• Touring until 11 November
• More comedy reviews on theartsdesk