Silly and inspired, Variety Soup by Slightly Fat Features certainly lived up to its name.

It truly is a circus like you have never seen it before and with a cast of only seven men, the group brings traditional British entertainment bang up to date.

They started the show with a reversed Reggie Perrin-style film sketch followed by an impressive nine-pin juggling routine.

This continued with a series of other silly and yet often awe-inspiring acts compered by the charismatic Goronwy Thom.

Jon Hicks’s stony expression added comedy to a series of eccentric and slightly sinister puppetry and magic show sketches, as well as a skillful demonstration of his artistic talent.

Herbie Treehead presented a hilariously calamitous character whose jokes and relatable silliness encouraged the audience to join him in singing a heart-warming tune towards the end of the show.

Richard Garaghty’s unconventional Siegfried and Roy-inspired adaptation of a traditional, circus-themed set of tricks combined with Gareth Jones’s extraordinary clingfilm escapology and Matt Barnard’s catchy sea shanty Hot Beans had even the most serious audience member smiling and laughing along.

Live music from the talented Rob Lee and Matt Bernard completed what was a fantastic and dynamic, family-friendly performance.

The warm atmosphere of the well-decorated Spiegeltent perfectly fitted the traditional entertainment theme of the show.

Although the production was an hour and 40 minutes long, lasting until well after 9pm which was unfortunate since it would also have been a hit with younger spectators, short acts maintained the performance’s fast pace and kept the audience thoroughly engaged.

Having closed the show with an unexpected and innovative final sketch, it was humbling to see the cast members thanking the visitors as they left.

Overall, it was an inspiringly humorous and unique must-see performance.

Annabelle Trew, part of the Canterbury Festival young critics scheme