Published: 4 March 2010
by ANGELA COBBINAH

WHEN Kylie Minogue turns up to the performance followed by a phalanx of paparazzi, it’s on course to be a winner. 

And so it was – Polly Rae: The All New Hurly Burly Show’s six-day West End run, which ended on Sunday, was a sell-out as punters flocked to see what striptease/burlesque cabaret was all about. 

Well, there was plenty of strutting and writhing as “Miss” Polly Rae and her six accomplices disrobed several times over and arranged themselves in various naughty poses. But at the end of the day it was more about comedy than sex, accompanied by a riveting mix of music arranged by Steve Anderson, Minogue’s musical director (hence the singer’s interest).

Rae is the master ­(or should it be mistress?) of innuendo as she switches from demure to demonically dotty with the batting of an eye lid. 

It was, as they say, all good clean fun though after a while the stripping started to get tediously predicatable – there are only so many ways to do it for an audience looking for quality entertainment rather than titillation. 

Thankfully, the music rearrangments kept up the pace. 

Anderson was also in evidence earlier on via the evening’s support act, Eloise, a young northern singer who belts out big melody ballads like a seasoned diva. Her creative team also includes Holborn-based Bobby Hanlon who is convinced that this sort of retro sound has a growing following.

Run ended