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Eurovision Sock Contest
The Eurovision Sock Contest
Gilded Balloon Teviot
3 -13 August, 4.30pm
by Gareth K Vile
Scottish Falsetto Socks: Eurovision Sock Contest | Comedy | Edinburgh Festival Fringe (edfringe.com)
HOME | falsettosock (scottishfalsettosocks.com)
Earth's funniest footwear are back with their latest comedy hour. Fresh from their appearance on Britain's Got Talent, The Scottish Falsetto Sock Puppet Theatre bring you a whole song contest for your voting pleasure. With entries from everyone from Scandinavia to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, from the Eastern Bloc to the country of your choice, who will win? You decide. Expect the usual songs, sketches, and gags sans frontiers.
Gareth K Vile talks to Kev F Sutherland
What was the genesis of the SFSPT? What inspired you?
I was doing a sketch show of sorts, called The Sitcom Trials, and had written some two-handers that I didn't want the actors to bugger up. So, I turned up at the script meeting with socks on my hands, ducked under the table and put on a silly voice. Turned out to be funnier than anything I'd done before.
Usually I would ask a vaguely despairing question about 'why the fringe?' but you have a real presence there, and fans who book your show before anything else... I wonder if you can comment on why you think the Fringe and the Socks have developed such a strong relationship?
We've been very lucky, in that an audience found us, liked us, and keep coming back. We could never have planned or contrived this, cos millions try and fail, so I can only hope it continues. We're managing to attract new fans with every new show, which is also a good thing. We've done twelve different shows over the years at Edinburgh, which is brilliant. I don't know how we'd keep that productivity going without Edinburgh audiences to feed it.
Although the Socks have an international appeal, is there anything in your work that you could point to as distinctively 'Scottish'?
Apart from our accents, and a Scottish sensibility which is kind of hard to put into words, I don't know what's distinctively Scottish about us. One of wears a kilt, does that count?
Can I ask a little about how Eurovision will work in this year's production? Is it a narrative device, or a way to include the various sketches and parodies?
We are performing seven new songs, specially written for the show, representing different countries, and the audience votes for their favourite. In between songs there are the usual sketches, and of course all the singers have their unique characters. From France's Jonni Forrina to The Former Macedoslavian Republic of Serblakia's entry Azherbi-Curious, we think you'll like them.
How did you find Britain's Got Talent? I am worried that the Socks might have been the subject of emotional manipulation by the show...
The Socks were victims of not being the sort of act that wins Britain's Got Talent. We filmed our slot on the stage of the London Palladium, in front of Simon, David and the rest, and, although we got buzzed off, we thought we managed a couple of minutes of televisual gold - especially all the interviews and pieces to camera we did during the day, which were stonking. We were truly on form all day. Then David Walliams decided we were shit and buzzed us off, which is fair enough. We were dying to use Simon Cowell's defence of us "They're a very funny act" on the posters. And it was all looking good. They even used our photo in the publicity in the TV Times. Then, as the weeks rolled by, it turned out that other acts were giving better telly than us, and we hit the cutting room floor. I've never learned why. Or whether it would have added any bums on seats. The ads now read "as not seen on Britain's Got Talent", and sales are doing okay.
