With over 10 million hits on their You Tube site, there can be very few people who are unaware that Fascinating Aida is a British comedy singing group and satirical cabaret act. Founded in March 1983 by Dillie Keane, along with Marilyn Cutts and Lizzie Richardson, the members have varied through the years, but the lasting two have been Dillie Keane and Adele Anderson, who joined the group about 9 months after it was formed.
During a rare few moments off during their current, extensive, national tour, including dates in Sussex, the two longest serving members of the group gave me an insight into the superb live cabaret act and global internet phenomenon that is Fascinating Aida.
So Dillie, how does it feel to have notched up 30 years in the group?
You know, I am extremely proud of our 30 years and what’s lovely is that we do seem to be quite popular at the moment – Long may it last!
Your dates in Brighton and Tunbridge Wells are absolutely mobbed out.
Dear old Tunbridge Wells. I don’t think that Tunbridge Wells will “mob” us. Things will really have gone to rack and ruin in the country in they mob us in Tunbridge Wells.
Isn’t that where “Disgusted” lives?
Well yes, exactly. “Disgusted” would never mob, he would just write a letter saying “I came to see your Fascinating Aida show and I was disgusted at the filth therein.”
When people come along, do they want to see new songs or your classic ones?
I think they want to see, and hear, a bit of both but, I’ve never really asked them. Although, funnily enough, we did ask, on our Facebook page, which we love because you can interact with people directly, with no promises, and no bribes accepted, which of the “back catalogue” people would like to hear. It was really interesting, and very funny, to see the answers that we got and we were quite pleased with ourselves because we seem to have picked the right ones. All the songs that we have “resurrected” from the “morgue” that is our back catalogue have been requested, which is a really nice feeling.
Over the years you seem to lose and, in most cases, regain your “third member”.
Yes I know. People say that it’s a bit like the Spinal Tap drummer, although I am very pleased to say that none of the previous Sopranos have spontaneously combusted! Actually Liza Pulman has been with us now for very nearly ten years, although she took a year out, to have a sabbatical, and then came back into the group because we had promised to “keep her space” as she seemed so right. We are the very best of friends and so when she said she was ready to come back, we said “Fine” and the lovely girl who had been her replacement always new that it was “Liza’s gig”.
And yet you and Adele have stayed together, almost, since the very beginning.
Yes, almost. Adele joined about nine months after we started. The thing is that Sopranos get offered other jobs and, as I’ve always said, Altos know a good job when they see one!
You’ve almost become part of British Heritage now.
What, like St Pancras station you mean?
Maybe not exactly like that, but you are something of an “institution”
Oh that’s marvellous; all I have ever wanted to be is an institution!
And finally, Charm Offensive, the current tour, Is it Charming? Is it Offensive?
I hope so, yes, in both cases!
Adele Anderson co-writes much of Fascinating Aida’s material and I started by asking her;
What I would really like to know from you is, how difficult is it to keep Dillie Keane under control?
Well, you have to sort of grab your moment with her really. She has an extraordinary brain and always has about 5 or 6 things going on at once. She loves computer games like Candy Crush Saga and I think that’s just her way of trying to switch off some of the things that are going on. Basically, she has ideas that sort of “gestate” and you have to be there to grab them when they are ready to come out, and then run with them. I’ve managed to do it for 29 years now and I think I’ve got the knack of it.
Sometimes I go to her place in the country, which is lovely, as I haven’t cooked a meal since 1984, and she really looks after me. We go out for walks with the dogs and I always have to take a pad and pen with me because she doesn’t waste a minute. Even if you had to go to the doctors you have to have the pen and paper with you because, although you and I might sit there and read a magazine, Dillie doesn’t, she is waiting for the next idea to come and often it does. It’s not a trial to do it, it’s actually a shining example of how to get the most from each waking moment.
Is being in Fascinating Aida as much fun as it appears to be?
Oh it is, yes. I don’t think we could have been doing it for so long if it weren’t because we spend so much time together. When we’re on the road we travel in the same vehicle, we stay in the same hotel and, because we do a song at the end of the show which has to be specially written for each venue where we appear, we are constantly writing on the tour too. So, yes, we have marvellous fun and, even though Liza is a good generation younger than us, she still has the same sort of cultural references because of her upbringing.
I’m sure what makes you so popular is the fact that your songs are so clever.
Well, thank you very much. Sometimes they take an awful lot of research. We’ve written a couple of songs now about the current financial crisis and, in particular, we wrote one about the workings of “the market” and that involved lots of research as we didn’t really know anything about “short selling” and all those other terms that they use in The City. That’s why the internet is such a good thing, although you always have to check that the information you’re getting from the internet is accurate so there’s also a lot of double checking involved with people who understand that sort of thing.
In this show we have written a song about OfStEd inspectors, because so many teachers have begged us to, and again that took quite a lot of research. I think that it’s one of those things that, the more you do it, the better at it you get so, some years ago, the thought of taking on a subject like that might have been quite daunting, but now we rather relish the challenge.
Are there any subjects that you wouldn’t sing about?
Well, we have a song in this show called Taboo, which is one from the back catalogue that we have re-written, and is covers all the subjects that we say you couldn’t possible sing about. I think we would probably be hard pushed to write a funny song about genocide, but there aren’t that many subjects that are totally of limits and, as we have discovered over the years, less and less is taboo. Because of social media people are prepared to reveal all sorts of disgusting details about themselves and subjects that you might have been ashamed of some years ago are discussed in open forum now.
And finally, let me put you on the spot, which is your favourite song to perform?
To perform, it has to be “Leider”, the german song. It’s actually not in the show this time although people have said that they miss it as, somehow, they never seem to tire of it. It’s just wonderful to do and it keeps you fit too!
Fascinating Aida can be seen performing at The Assembly Hall Theatre, Tunbridge Wells on Tuesday 15th October and at the Theatre Royal Brighton on Sunday 20th October with some tickets available. The tour is also returning to the Theatre Royal Brighton on Sunday 2nd March 2014 and tickets are already on sale.