The Reduced Shakespeare Company bring their critically acclaimed season to Epsom and Leatherhead following Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2014 plaudits.

The self styled "bad boys of abridgement" will attempt a complete history of comedy, guiding the audience through the ages in a delightfully confusing 90 minute crash course.

In a new show written and directed by Reed Martin & Austin Tichenor, the company will tackle Aristophane, Shakespeare and Charlie Chaplin hand in hand.

Austin Tichenor said: "Since 1992 we’ve been tackling large important topics and reducing them to quick condensed comedies. We try to go fast enough so the audience is not ahead of us but not so fast that they’re behind."

"We’re so lucky, this is the greatest job in the world. Covering the history of comedy - in one sentence it’s the subject we’ve been waiting all our lives to produce. All those hours on the couch in front of the TV weren’t wasted!"

"Audiences know more about some of these large topics than they think they do - they’ve grown up with it and absorbed it and they don’t even know it.

"What’s interesting is how many of these comedy tropes go back for centuries -a whoopie cushion was actually invented by a roman emperor, the rubber chicken by a 18th century clown called Grimmaldi and fart jokes trace a noble line back to Chaucer and Shakespeare."

The company’s shows have enjoyed great success in London.

"We had three shows in London, from 1996-2005. We actually had the longest ever run for a comedy - that was a nice time!"

"We try to be in the spirit of vaudeville comedy, both high brow and low brow at the same time.

"The moral of the show is that everybody has a responsibility to better the world by making people laugh. So tell better jokes, people!"

The remarkable energy brought to the shows can be enjoyed at both the Epsom Playhouse and Leatherhead Theatre as part of a national tour.

The Complete History of Comedy; Leatherhead Theatre, Church Street, Leatherhead; Wednesday 28 January; £16; call 01372 365141 or visit leatherheadtheatre.org

Also at Epsom Playhouse, Ashley Avenue, Epsom; Saturday 1 February; £16; call 01372 724555 or visit epsomplayhouse.co.uk