ALL summer long, something strange, unexpected and unpredictable has been stirring around the city. And we’re not just talking about the weather.

Although, technically, we are a bit.

For six weeks, pop-up theatre company, Bonk Street productions has been beavering away creating an entirely new piece of theatre, built from improvisations, a loose sense of direction, and a common appreciation of Ken Campbell’s legendary Science Fiction Theatre of Liverpool.

Campbell’s soup of ideas saw a refreshingly anti-stage school blend of 50s B-Movies, comic strip aesthetics and sideshow freakery hit the bars and clubs of the city.

Fast forward 35 years, and Bonk Street’s From Beyond Iron Mountain, directed by Bob Moyler, is a definite nod and a wink in Campbell’s direction: the Eye in the Pyramid motif is a clue to those in the know.

But you don’t need arcane symbolism knowledge to enjoy this whimsical, lo-fi sci-fi piece of summer silliness. We’re in a bizarre science lab atop Iron Mountain, and strange contraptions are being road-tested by an unholy gang of misfits. Think of the Aerodrome studio in Top Gear, squint your eyes a bit, and you’ve got the general idea.

A powerful weather-controlling contraption, last seen in Kate Bush’s Cloudbusting video, has been hastily sold to Colin Smo (nicely played, à la Eddie Izzard, by Trev Fleming). Once set in motion, it summons up unearthly evil, unforeseen consequences, and wreaks havoc on the streets.

Is it a great piece of theatre? No. Is that its aim? Of course not.

Bonk Street provides welcome respite to the usual theatrical diet of hand-wringing and soul-searching.

From Beyond Iron Mountain offers a short blast of something strange, occasionally frustrating, and ultimately enjoyable.

A bit like summer, really.

David Lloyd