Shannon Matthews the Musical the Movie

We arrived, along with all the rest, excited to see the London premiere of what we knew was going to be a very funny and irreverent film Rest assured we were not disappointed! Not only was it a very funny film it was very well made, well shot and directed. Especially when you consider the minimal budget that they had to work with!

Although in my heading I suggested it might not be for the faint hearted I think I can safely say that I was one of, if not the, oldest member of the audience that night and I was certainly laughing with all the rest The fantasy dance scenes were beautifully choreographed, both well danced and funny!

All in all it was a great night out which my friend and I thoroughly enjoyed. It says something that on several occasions I have woken in the morning with Shannon's Not Dead She's Under His Bed going round in my head!!

Well done to all involved and let's hope for a greater distribution or a least a DVD Release.

Surely the funniest film of the year, though that statement comes with major caveats about its subject matter, content and language, which means that its chances of finding appreciative audiences seem very limited. It's a true-crime comedy musical written and composed by one-man filth-pop cult legend Kunt and the Gang, whose song lyrics revolve largely around genitals, sexual acts, newsworthy paedophiles and other unsavoury subjects. Despite that, he's troubled the Top 75 twice with "Use My Arsehole as a Cunt" and "Fucksticks", and as frontman of punk band The Kunts, has had four more recent Top 10 hits, including "Boris Johnson is a Fucking Cunt" and "Fuck the Tories". So you get the sense of what he does.

Despite those left-wing credentials, Kunt goes full tabloid exposé in his take on northern council estate life as epitomised by Karen Matthews. An unemployed mum of seven children, almost all of whom have "Different Dads" according to one of the songs here, she notoriously came up with "A Plan (Based on Maddie McCann)" to fake the abduction of her daughter Shannon, in the hope of splitting the Sun newspaper's inevitable cash reward with her accomplice. The depiction of this fraud - and of Karen's lifestyle - is done in incredibly poor taste, but the thing about Kunt is that he's able to do very bad taste with a cheeky wink. Even when he's not the person you're watching sing the songs (or speak the dialogue), that adorable, hilarious naughtiness is still there.

It's there in the numerous background jokes, many of which demand a rewatch to take in properly. It's definitely there in the lyrics, which for example, rhyme "computer jargon" with "why have you got that hard-on?". And it's there in the the ever-jaunty, major-key synth backing music that even make songs called things like "You're a Paedophile" so catchy and enjoyable. The film's production values are akin with the tinny tunes: pretty basic and rough around the edges, but with enough comedy chops to overcome the lack of polish. The staging of "Shannon Ain't Dead (She's Under My Bed)" as a chase scene around the north of England is particularly brilliant, and there are many, many other highlights. But it's a difficult film to recommend to anyone you want to remain friends with, because if they hate it, chances are they'll get the police to check your hard drive.

Fan of the dark, smutty and controversial here. If you are, you'll love this. Being a fan of Kunt & The Gang as well as The Kunts I've always been keen to see what they do next and unfortunately couldn't get a ticket to the stage show musical of this album so when the film was announced I was happy and patient and it finally came (no pun intended, or was there?). And whilst there's protestors moaning about this without better things to do, the musical doesn't criticise poor Shannon in any way and I truly hope she's safe and well these days (name change and fostering with support has hopefully protected her) but it really does with her disgusting mother and family and doesn't hold back. If it wasn't true it would actually be shocking but it's all true and is there to be poked fun of hugely! Better to laugh at these things than be shocked I feel. Just like Brass Eye's peadophile episode of course before this. And controversial comedians like Jerry Sadowitz (recently cancelled from Edinburgh bizarrely) and Doug Stanhope and Bill Hicks and Frankie Boyle. It's important to laugh.

And the fact this was low budget, crowd funded too with some slightly bad acting and effects in some places too doesn't deter. If you're a fan you'll love it anyway. If you're new, welcome. If you're just here as you're intrigued I hope you enjoy as much as the wrong uns here all have, we are certain types of people after all. ;)

Having owned the Musical on CD for years and then being informed that it was to be made into a film, I couldn't contain my excitement. Was the anticipation worth it? Absolutely! The plot may seem ridiculous. You may be sat watching and thinking "has this all come from Kunt's imagination?" Nope. It all came from Karen Matthews, believe it or not. The storyline may sound daft, but the beauty of it is how Kunt and co have managed to write hilarious songs based on the story. The actors portraying the characters do a superb job also of bringing the story line to life with humor. Don't Wikipedia to find out what happened. Just watch this film...

A great film with some memorable songs which YOU will be humming along to for days after, cast are brilliant. Won't be for everyone but if you like your humour dark and want to watch a very funny version of an almighty strange story then give this a go. I attended the london permiere and was amongst cast and like minded film goers and we all have a jolly good time. I hope this film gets a cinema run as it does deserve to be seen on a big screen. Aware some people think this sort of film is wrong and I say to them don't watch it if it is going to offend you and let the people who do enjoy their humour with a sprinkle of sick humour to lap it up.