The Fringe is full of lots of weird and wonderful shows - what's weird for some is wonderful for others. A classic example of this is Andy Smart's show "The Dope", an hour devoted to the history and culture of marijuana. This is certainly a controversial subject to pick, and I asked Andy a bit more about it.
In answer to the simple question "Why?", his answer is quick and simple - a strong feeling that cannabis possession and use should be legalised in the UK. His second reason is "for a bit of fun" - and why not indeed. The show is influenced by this mix of reasons - he calls it "infotainment" and I agree with him - learn through laughter. It is five years since his last solo show at the Fringe, and he was looking for something interesting to do as a theme - so did something he felt strongly about. The more he researched, he says, the more fascinated he became by the facts and the mythology of cannabis.
Regarding the first reason, he certainly knows his subject, and feels strongly enough about it to talk about it for an hour in full view of the world - and the police. He says that he is trying to get rid of some of the "Reefer Madness" misconceptions surrounding cannabis and its uses - the hemp plant has more than 1,000 uses, and he quotes the fact that Henry Ford actually made a car entirely of hemp - hemp oil may be the best substitute for petroleum, and that hemp fibre makes better and more biodegradable fibreglass. All of this lost due to the fact that cannabis has this interesting chemical in it....
However, companies like the Body Shop and the Cannabis Shipping Company are now selling hemp-based products made from hemp plants with the fun bit taken out - hemp is making a comeback. So why legalise the use of cannabis as a drug?
He has a good answer for this too - his sister has been a sufferer of multiple sclerosis for the last thirteen years, and cannabis has recently been legalised for medical use in this country - admittedly for only a handful of people. His sister's condition clearly means a lot to him - he tries to do a benefit every year for MS-related charities.
Reactions to his show's theme have been mixed - apparently his mum "laughed" but supports him because of his sister's medical condition. Other comedians thought it was a publicity stunt. The audiences have come for many reasons, he has had couples in their fifties who have children who use the drug and are coming to find out more. Others have just come for the prospect of a free joint...
He goes on to say that cigarette companies are already anticipating legalisation - Bob Marley's family sued a cigarette company as they had tried to patent "Marleys" as a name for their future cannabis cigarettes.
The Fringe is the place for a show like this - you get three weeks to try out something new, something you may not get away with anywhere else. He has been asked to take "The Dope" to the Montreal Fringe - the legalisation lobby there have also had some successes, like legalisation of possession of less than an ounce and legalisation for medical use.
It's nice to see "a man with a mission" who can put his view across in a well-balanced and informed way - he expects to see legalisation in his lifetime, and seems proud to have made a stand for this goal when most other people make a nod to the "dope joke" but still sit on the fence. This is the sort of thing that the Fringe was made for, and good luck to him.