THE THORNBURY Festival kicked off in style last night with a visit from comedienne and Grumpy Old Woman Jenny Eclair.

It was wonderful to see such a packed house welcome the Jungle escapee to Thornbury, and it took her just a few minutes and her ‘rudest’ joke to weigh up her audience’s sensibilities and adjust her routine accordingly.

I’m not sure how much the men, who were a minority in the audience which was largely made up of middle-aged, middle-class women, enjoyed the show which relied heavily on jokes about periods and the menopause, because some of her more vivid descriptions certainly had me squirming in my seat. But we all knew what to expect, and that was why we were there.

But Jenny is growing old disgracefully, and her observations on life’s little changes had us roaring with laughter - especially when concerning clothing for the ‘older lady’ and how to deal with your daughter’s friends seeing you naked.

It was nice that Jenny had taken the time to explore the town a little - well, at least she knew the name of the chippy - and was more than a little impressed at our knowledge of the times tables.

No, she wasn’t sure if she could use the chair because it ‘looked like somebody has died in it!’ but she was prepared to show us the knobbly knees hiding under her (Per Una) trousers and did a great impression of what it looks like for a woman to be ‘pampered’ - whether she wants to be or not!

Like a good wine, Jenny Éclair has mellowed with age and is definitely more relaxed than she was a decade or two ago. And you get used to the swearing after the first ten minutes.

Apparently we were being used as guinea pigs for some new gags but, never having seen Jenny in action before, I couldn’t tell which of her material was ‘vintage’ and which was new because Jenny is a master at using her on-stage energy and versatility to pick her audience up should the energy levels begin to flag.

Leaving the Hall, there were murmurs of approval all around, and I even heard a fellow audience member comment: “Didn’t it feel like she was one of us?”.

It was really terrific to see such a big name supporting the Festival, which continues until May 15 and this year includes visits from such luminaries as Julian Lloyd Webber and Henry Blofeld.

For more details of events taking place, visit www.thornburyartsfestival.com