‘Beat The Goose’ Review by Ben Pabla
★★★★★
Beat The Goose is a live comedy Game Show hosted by Darren Cullen and Ewan May, two of Barcelona’s best comedians. The best analogy I can think of to describe this show is this: Comedy shows are like drinks on a night out. You can get fancy cocktails, you can get cheap shots, you can get zesty wines, you can get infuriatingly expensive bottles of water, etc. This show is a pint! A bloody lovely, well poured, crisp pint. You’re not standing on ceremony at a fine restaurant, not sitting uncomfortably on a stool in a Speakeasy, not in the nightclub worrying about your tinnitus getting worse. You’re in the pub, your local pub with your mates, doing a pub quiz where your mate is hosting it for a laugh. You’ve got your comfy trainers on and it’s a bank holiday tomorrow. Sorted.
You honestly won’t find a more likeable pair of hosts anywhere. Darren and Ewan take your enjoyment seriously, but not themselves. This is why you enjoy their company. The show works like this: Three comedians pair up with three members of the audience, forming three teams of two. There are then three rounds to gather as many points as possible, in which the winning team goes onto a final quick-fire trivia round, where they face The Goose. Who is The Goose? The Goose is Ewan May, shirtless, wearing thick black sunglasses and a white towel around his head, with the name “Goose” written in felt pen on his chest. The Goose is let loose and enters, feral from the back of the room as the lights turn dark red, and he screeches, “Ka~Kaw!” (Fun fact. Gooses usually honk but not when they are participating in Game Shows). Imagine Alex Turner playing Dr. Frank-N-Furter from The Rocky Horror Picture Show and you’ve got the picture. All of this happens whilst Darren casually keeps the hosting wheel steady, interacting with the crowd and reassuring them that The Goose won’t attack (unless provoked). If you answer more questions than The Goose can in one minute, you leave with a prize, and respect from The Goose (Darren too but that’s not important).
There are so many wonderful things to write about this show. For example, there’s the feature guest host, Dr. Fuck (played by Ewan again), a relationship therapist who asks questions about love and marriage all while revealing his estranged relationship with his ex-wife and daughter. There’s the joy in watching the participants become more spontaneous as they relax into the playfulness of it all. There’s the wit of the comedians chiming in getting laughs all over the place. I haven’t got the word count to go into it all. But it’s just all bloody brilliant. Unsurprisingly, they have a huge returning audience every week. The show is designed to make everyone feel welcome and to purposefully poke fun at over-stylized, gimmicky comedy shows that try to be so cool and Instagram-worthy that it hurts. Darren and Ewan are a real laugh. They’re proper fun. If it’s genuine laughter you’re after, then come along and have a pint and kick the crap out of this Goose.
This review of Beat the Goose, written and performed by Darren Cullen and Ewan May, was based on their Nov. 7, 2024 performance at the Comedy Clubhouse during the Barcelona Fringe Festival.
