Sister opens a flaming Bible

STANDING 6FT 2IN and sporting a ZZ Top-style beard, Martin Bigpig does not look much like his great grandmother, Sister Kitty Mucmor, an Irish nun who died in 1900.

But his show, "My granny was a bearded lady", in which he juggles burning crucifixes and opens a flaming Bible, has been critically acclaimed at the Edinburgh Fringe.

"She was in the circus until my great grandfather fell into alcoholism, died and she entered the convent," Mr Bigpig said yesterday. "The show is about how she might have entertained her fellow nuns. So in the act she does knife throwing and spoof sword swallowing.

"At one point, I tell the audience that if the Lord did not want me to do these jokes, he would give me a sign. So I pick up a Bible and open it at random. It bursts into flames."

The comedian is Martin Mucmor, 36. He acquired his present title after eating 25 breakfasts in an attempt to get into The Guinness Book of Records. He failed because the sausages were too small.