For the past nine years, Adam Riches and John Kearns have been texting each other in the guise of musical/opera singers Michael Ball and Alfie Boe. It began when they realised they were both watching the same ITV special, Ball And Boe: One Night Only. ‘In loads of therapy situations, they’ll get people to hold something or do a voice so that they can mask their true feelings and tell each other honesties,’ says Riches. ‘And I think John and I shared key moments in those years in the guises of Michael Ball and Alfie Boe. We found it easier to get close as friends while being them than we ever would in our own skins.’ 

In 2020, the comedians decided to go and see the singers in concert. ‘We were just blown away by it,’ says Riches. ‘And then we started talking a little bit more about “what if we did one of their shows verbatim?”’ Over the following years, the pair would glibly tease their nascent idea in interviews, pretending it was to be their next big project ‘as a joke to make each other laugh’… until Soho Theatre finally called their bluff. The pair quickly came up with a catchy title and arranged a photo shoot. ‘We can be honest now: John and I had nothing. We had a great title and a great poster. But then it started to catch fire and suddenly we were faced with the prospect of writing this show that was just a silly in-joke between us.’

When Adam Riches And John Kearns Are Ball And Boe opened in London last December, it was a huge success, and they put much of that down to its traditional set-up. As Kearns points out, ‘in a world where no one wants to do that, you can actually stand out by being that.’ To their delight, the real singers proved to be great sports, turning the tables by going to watch their show. Boe even gave Riches a singing lesson and joined them on stage. ‘They were very, very generous,’ says Riches. ‘It was a unique experience and a really positive one. We have respect and affection for them but they’re prepared to take a few little digs at their own expense.’

If you don’t know your Ball from your Boe, then no matter. ‘A lot of people said that after the show they looked them up and went “oh right, it’s kind of real,”’ says Kearns, whose 20-year-old cousins thought that he and Riches had simply made up their two alter egos. Nevertheless, as Kearns adds, the format is familiar: ‘they know Michael Bublé, they know Rat Pack, they know it’s guys having a bit of banter, having a bit of schtick and singing standards.’

As for whether the pair would like to (re)create another double act, Riches says they’d have to do something outré: ‘Thatcher and Heseltine or something like that,’ he laughs. ‘Ball and Boe are the entry point for the show. Once it gets running, it could be any double act in any era in any kind of medium, because all those regular dynamics that you might expect on stage come true.’

Adam Riches And John Kearns Are Ball And Boe, Pleasance Courtyard, 14–16 August, 11pm.