Sam Brown & Donal Coonanare are on a mission.

They need to cheer up Edinburgh's manically depressed and have the world's most amusing musical instrument to do it.

The idea behind Learn to Play the Ukulele in Under an Hour is clever. According to Sam the ukulele is the happiest instrument on the planet and, with such a powerfully uplifting effect, there is no way anybody could be upset if they have had the chance to play it.

With this in mind the duo set about to double the nation's happiness by teaching the audience the ukulele.

Each audience member gets a Uke for himself while Sam and Donal run through such musical greats as 'Row Row Row Your Boat' and Britney Spear's 'Oh Baby Baby'.

Sam and Donal have a close onstage relationship with Sam taking the role of the older, embarrassingly dressed mentor who is quick to add a sexual reference to any part of the material while Donal plays his understudy.

The ridiculously contrived plotline twists through the story of Donal's depression, the history of the ukulele and an investigation into whether the George Formby Society is a den of intrigue and sexual vice.

At times it plays second fiddle to the real entertainment though, the ukuleles. Throughout the show you hear the idle strumming of grown adults taken back into childish playfulness by the novelty of being given a new toy.

The effect is the world's worst orchestral accompaniment.

At times you look down to see a mass of fingers and thumbs trying to swap G7 of C while singing a version of 'He's got the whole world in his hands'. Eventually the chaotic mass of sound gives way to some kind of uniformity.

More engaging than any other show at the Fringe, Learn to play the ukulele will leave you as happy as Larry, and that little bit more musically adept.

Tim Clark

Learn to play the Ukulele (how George Formby saved my life) is on at the Gilded Balloon at 16:45 until the 24th August.

Such Small Portions at the Edinburgh Fringe, in association with Virgin Trains.