Sapphic bird's eye view of ... an L of a night

She came, she swore, she conquered.

Comedian Sue Perkins had an L of a Night in Nottingham with a standing ovation she had earned well before the end of her unique set.

But, of course, she had to share the acclaim with her new stand-up partner, Mary Connell. OK, maybe Mary’s name didn’t appear on the bill alongside Ms Perkins, but the 750-plus lesbians at the city’s Playhouse bore witness to the birth of a new double act to rival Morecambe and Wise, Reeves and Mortimer or … well … Mel and Sue.

The delightful Mary was the signer for Freshly Squeezed’s second offering of large-scale lesbian entertainment and she found a difficult job becoming considerably harder thanks to Sue’s wicked sense of humour. But top marks to her for playing along as Sue came up with even more outrageous words for Mary to sign.

As well as finding a new stooge in Mary, Sue also invited audience participation to fuel her act. She feeds from the crowd and walks on the stage without a clue of which direction she will go in. She is either very brave - or loves a gamble! She rose to the occasion both with the not-so-forthcoming members of the audience as well as to the overly forthcoming and the audience loved it, and her.

Sue’s heartfelt ovation wasn’t the only one on a night of fabulous fun. If Sue was the delicious dessert you tuck into at the end of a satisfying meal, then those new girls on the block, Greymatter, were the perfect appetiser.

The five-piece band are the greatest thing to come out of Reading since … erm … no, they ARE the greatest thing to come out of Reading. They are gaining a growing reputation and a similarly growing support. And you don’t need to use your own grey matter to work out why.

Emma, Georgey, Jules, Julie - and Bob, who was probably the loneliest man in the Playhouse - played an energetic set featuring material taken from their debut album Hands on Fire.

Not surprisingly they have already been likened to the Indigo Girls - a comparison I‘m sure the girls (and Bob) are flattered by, but it also seems an unfair one for a band which is creating its own sound. And judging by the enthusiastic reception they were given, it is a sound which is earning them a lot of fans.

These dykes with mikes with their thoughtful lyrics and sparkling instrumentals were having a ball and their enjoyment was infectious.

Clare Summerskill must have wondered how she could follow such a great opening, but she rose to the occasion magnificently with her mix of stand-up and music.

But Clare did have me feeling somewhat uncomfortable - and that wasn’t because I was crouched on the floor by the stage with my camera poised. No, I think Clare has a window into my world.

Her astute observations on life as a lesbian made me - and I suspect about 99 per cent of the audience - realise that much as we strive to be individual and not conform to the norm, we are essentially just the same as the next self-respecting dyke!

Has she been listening into my conversations at work? “I love you”; “Ditto”; “No, I really love you”; “Likewise” … so, so close to the truth.

Clare had us all looking at our partners and nodding as we acknowledged the reality of what she was saying.

And Clare doesn’t just say it, she sings it too, just to force the point home! “I’m no longer an I, I’m a we…” Oh, so true and so brilliantly observed.

The lesbian feast was completed by Brighton singer-songwriter Al Start, a very individual performer. Cross-dressing neighbours and retro sweets aren’t the usual subjects for songs, but Al crafts such quirky lyrics and it works.

She is also a very chilled out performer who spent the first half of the show watching from the audience.

Al is warm and witty and loves to share the stories behind her songs. Her set, where she was joined by drummer/clarinetist Kellie Santin, featured a mixture of her own music as well as Eagles and Joni Mitchell covers.

And the queue at the merchandising stall later for her CDs showed what a hit she had been.

One thing Al had struggled with during her set, which she was happy to confess, was multi-tasking … but not such a problem for Belinda O’Hooley.  Not only is Belinda one half of the organisers Freshly Squeezed with Rhoda McClure, she also compered for the evening, giving her the opportunity to leave her comfort zone as a singer, and try her hand at stand-up, something she admitted she had always wanted to try.

And with her self-deprecating style, I think she may be asking herself to emcee at the next L of a Night. Because you can be sure there will be another one.

Packed houses at Leeds last year for the inaugural show and again in Nottingham are more than ample proof that Freshly Squeezed have hit on an idea which is set to run and run. Bring on the next one, ladies!

Review by: Julie Gibson