“The mad scientists of pop, mixing unlikely solutions from incompatible artists and distilling entire genres into their separate elements with the tenacity of a Rottweiler and the charm of a Disney prince.”
FRISKY & MANNISH
A musical comedy double act conceived, written, arranged, performed, directed and produced by MFJ & Laura Corcoran.
Artwork & images by Rosie Collins, Magnus Hastings, Idil Sukan, Aemen Sukkar for Jiksaw, Dominic Moriarty, Ayesha Hussain & Tom Kennedy.
SELECTED PERFORMANCES:
London: Shepherd’s Bush Empire, Southbank Centre, Lyric Theatre, Noël Coward Theatre, The Forum, KOKO, Hippodrome, Café de Paris, Lovebox, Greenwich Comedy Festival
UK & Eire: Edinburgh (Fringe, International TV Festival & Hogmanay), Cardiff (Wales Millennium Centre), Dublin (Samuel Beckett Theatre), Brighton (Dome), Manchester (Pride & Lowry), Milton Keynes (International Festival), Glastonbury, Bestival, Latitude, T in the Park, 9 tours
International: Sydney (Opera House & Seymour Centre), Adelaide (Fringe & Cabaret Festivals), Perth (Fringe World), Melbourne (Comedy Festival), New Zealand (Arts Festival & Auckland Live), New York (Slipper Room), Berlin (ufaFabrik), Singapore (Howl at the Moon) & Hong Kong (Central Harbourfront)
Radio: BBC Radio 1 (Scott Mills, ‘Perfect Christmas Single’), BBC Radio 2 (Jo Whiley, The Arts Show), BBC Radio 3 (The Verb), BBC Radio 4 (Sketchorama), BBC 6 Music (Lauren Laverne)
TV: BBC2 (The Culture Show), BBC3 (Live at the Fringe)
Short film: Too Cabaret: A Message for Gary Barlow (viral)
Podcast: The Frisky & Mannish Podcast (#1 on iTunes Comedy Chart)
“Nothing short of astonishing” ★★★★★ Adelaide Advertiser
“What can I say?” ★★★★★ British Theatre Guide
“There just aren’t enough superlatives to describe the experience” ★★★★★ Broadway Baby
“Pure exhilarating brilliance from start to finish” ★★★★★ Chortle
“Dazzling” ★★★★★ Edinburgh Spotlight
“Their energy is electric” ★★★★★ FreshAir
“The undisputed hit of the Edinburgh Fringe” ★★★★★ The Herald
“Genuinely inspiring… they might some day eclipse the pop stars they're parodying” ★★★★★ The List
“A gold-star masterclass” ★★★★★ Mail on Sunday
“Words almost fail me” ★★★★★ One4Review
“Just plain wonderful” ★★★★★ The Skinny
“Will send a chill down your spine” ★★★★★ Three Weeks
“Fully blown superstars” ★★★★★ Time Out
“Clever, inventive, polished, prodigiously talented and extremely funny” ★★★★★ Time Out Sydney
“A must-see hour of perfect musical comedy” ★★★★★ West End Wilma
“Devastatingly clever” ★★★★ Arts Hub
“Deliriously entertaining” ★★★★ The Independent
“Outlandishly funny” ★★★★ The Mail
“Constantly evolving” ★★★★ Metro
“Outstanding” ★★★★ The Observer
“A force of nature” ★★★★ West Australian
“You won’t want to be anywhere else” The Guardian
“Unbelievable” The Sun
“Superb and uncontrollable” Sunday Times
“Delivered with such glittering panache” The Telegraph
“A global phenomenon” The Times
“The comedians, Frisky & Mannish” The Independent
“Frisky & Mannish interview” The Telegraph
“Where are comedy’s male-female double acts?” The Guardian
“Frisky & Mannish: It’s hard making pop music funnier than it already is” The Observer
“What cabaret can teach traditional theatre” The Guardian
☆ Winners, The Guardian Award
☆ Winners, Adelaide Fringe Weekly Award
☆ Winners, Entertainmentwise Award
☆ Winners, FringeGuru Award
☆ Runners-up, Hackney Empire New Act of the Year
☆ Runners-up, Edinburgh Festival Guide’s Top Rated Shows
☆ Nominees, Chortle Award for Best Music or Variety Act
☆ Nominees, Loaded LAFTA Award for Best Newcomer
“This is impossible! We’ve got no motives. No suspects. We don’t know anything! Who knew solving a murder would be so hard?”
KATHY & STELLA SOLVE A MURDER!
A comedy musical about two true crime podcasters thrust into a thrilling whodunnit of their own.
Music, lyrics, arrangements and musical direction by MFJ.
Book and lyrics by Jon Brittain.
Direction by Jon Brittain & Fabian Aloise.
Produced by Francesca Moody, Kater Gordon, Fiery Angel & Wessex Grove.
Published by Bloomsbury.
Images by Mihaela Bodlovic & Pamela Raith featuring Bronté Barbé, Rebekah Hinds, Imelda Warren-Green, Elliot Broadfoot, Hannah-Jane Fox, Jodie Jacobs, TJ Lloyd, Ben Redfern, Elliotte Williams-N’Dure, Jacob Kohli & Sarah Pearson.
PERFORMANCES:
Edinburgh Paines Plough Roundabout at Summerhall (2022)
Edinburgh Underbelly (2023)
Bristol Old Vic (2023)
Manchester HOME (2023)
London Ambassadors Theatre (2024)
☆ Winner, Musical Theatre Review Award for Best Musical
☆ Winner, Theatre Weekly Award for Best Musical
☆ Pick of the Fringe MusicalTalk
☆ Best Shows of the Edinburgh Fringe The Stage
“Terrific… painfully funny” ★★★★★ Arts Desk
“I defy you not to fall in love with it” ★★★★★ The i
“Brilliantly joyful” ★★★★ Evening Standard
“Catchy songs and witty, perceptive lines” ★★★★ Financial Times
“Lightning music and lyrics… packed with artistry” ★★★★ The Guardian
“Fast-paced, clever, funny and bang up to date” ★★★★ The Scotsman
“Not only packed with super songs but fabulously underscored too… The style, speed and overall playfulness is irresistible” Musical Theatre Review
“One of the big success stories at last year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe, a bona fide hit during a tricky year when the fringe was still in recovery mode… a big, warm-hearted show at a time when people needed just that” The Stage
“Something good is happening when a young group, outside the established and celebrated mainstream, get together and make a show on the fringes, daring to be different, facing the perils of launching it down the slipway to fill the stalls with surprised glee” Libby Purves, Theatrecat
“Richard used to be on Top of the World, to the left of (and slightly behind) Karen. Now he’s coming back with a vengeance, only to find that it’s not exactly Yesterday, Once More. In a world where Rainy Days and Mondays collide, one man’s Solitairy journey to find himself has Only Just Begun.”
RICHARD CARPENTER IS CLOSE TO YOU
A play about being stuck behind the piano, written and performed by MFJ.
Dramaturgy by Charlotte Gittins.
Design by David Doyle.
Produced by Samuel Nunn for RBM, & Carrie Hardie for Serious Comedy.
Images by Mark Dawson, Tricia Yourkevich for BBC & Alli Burke.
PERFORMANCES:
Brighton Otherplace (2017)
Oxford Old Fire Station (2017)
Buxton Underground (2017)
Bristol Wardrobe Theatre (2017)
Edinburgh Underbelly & BBC Presents (2017)
Adelaide Festival Centre (2018)
Melbourne Butterfly Club (2018)
London Bloomsbury Theatre (2018)
UK tour (2018)
☆ Winner, Buxton Fringe Award for Best New Writing
☆ Best Shows of the Edinburgh Fringe The Stage
☆ Top Pick The Guardian
“Achieves something rare… with a hugely commendable lightness of touch” ★★★★★ Reviews Hub
“Probably the most impressive performance I’ve seen at the Fringe” ★★★★½ Edinburgh Culture Review
“The pastiche musical numbers are meticulously constructed, as you might expect, but the bittersweet comedy narrative is priceless” ★★★★ The Stage
“Delightfully on the money… [a] stroke of genius” ★★★★ The Times
“One of the best shows I’ve seen” Australian Arts Review
“It’s a show about unmet expectations... [combining] the expert pop pastiche that MFJ and Laura Corcoran delivered as Frisky & Mannish with the more uncanny and unnerving neurotic introspection that has marked Floyd Jones’s recent solo projects. The result is powerful, entertaining and empowering, and bloody funny.” Ben Walters, Not Television
“Sally’s a happy person. She doesn’t let little things get her down and almost never cries. But she’s got an illness. It makes her feel like she isn’t the person she wants to be…”
A SUPER HAPPY STORY (ABOUT FEELING SUPER SAD)
A fun, silly and sad show for anyone whose brain isn’t always on their side.
Music, lyrics and musical direction by MFJ.
Book and lyrics by Jon Brittain.
Direction by Alex Mitchell.
Produced by Martin Atkinson for Silent Uproar, & Seabright Productions.
Published by Bloomsbury.
Developed with support from Hull UK City of Culture 2017.
Images by Richard Davenport & Sam Taylor featuring Madeleine MacMahon, Sophie Clay & Ed Yelland.
PERFORMANCES:
Hull Truck (2017)
London New Diorama (2017)
Edinburgh Pleasance (2017)
Aldeburgh HighTide Festival (2018)
UK tour (2018)
London VAULT Festival (2020)
UK tour (2020)
London Wilton’s Music Hall & Stream.theatre (2021)
A transfer to 59E59 Theaters New York was announced for 2020 but cancelled due to the pandemic.
☆ Winner, Fringe First Award
☆ Winner, Musical Theatre Review Award for Best Musical
☆ Winner, KSF Artists of Choice Award for UK Musical Theatre
☆ Nominee, Holden Street Theatre Award
☆ Nominee, Mental Health Fringe Award
☆ Nominee, Off West End Award for Best Musical
“Jones does a stellar job here” ★★★★★ The Upcoming
“Enrapturing… You’d be hard pushed to find a better musical at this year’s Fringe” ★★★★★ What’s On Stage
“Beautiful, spine-tingling show” ★★★★ The List
“Wonderfully witty songs” ★★★★ The Scotsman
“A mix of wit and low key emotion that suddenly grips you by your heart” The Guardian
