ON the surface, comedy cabaret act Fascinating Aida is three women in posh frocks and pearls singing cute ditties around a piano.

But listen to the lyrics and you'll find biting satire and savage social commentary. Nothing is off limits - New Age religion, modern art, business fat cats, Justin 'amoeba' Bieber, celebrities' babies, cheap flights and East European folk music.

The trio - Dillie Keane, Adele Anderson and Liza Pulman - will return to Bradford early next year with new show, Charm Offensive.

Fascinating Aida, or FA to the legion of fans, was created 31 years ago by Dillie. "I was singing with friends, we did bits here and there, suddenly we needed a name because we were getting gigs and the next thing, Fascinating Aïda was in existence," she says.

The troupe's songs are hugely popular, with some getting millions of views on YouTube. What is it about the act that people love so much?

"I think people love our sheer cheek, and the fact that we are musically very solid means the songs are always comfortable on the ear," says Dillie. "The quality of the songwriting is high - I’ll be honest, I don’t think there’s anyone writing comic songs in the English language to touch us for quality and consistency. We’re incredibly brutal with each other and with ourselves to always try and make the writing better. And there’s an honesty and an integrity at the heart of what we do which people instinctively warm to.

She adds: "The bar is set surprisingly high in our rehearsal room. We never settle for something, we cull ruthlessly and never stop writing, and the three of us challenge each other all the time. We're all three great big children, we’re all terribly naughty and laugh a lot, on stage and off.

"We tweak songs and come up with new material on the hoof. There's always a tiny bit of my brain going, 'I wonder if there's a song in that'."

As well as being a musician and comic performer, Dillie is an Olivier Award-nominated actress. Her theatre credits include Charley's Aunt and one-woman show Back With You.

She studied music at Trinity College, Dublin, and acting at LAMDA. She and Adele Anderson have been joined by nine sopranos over the years.

""In the beginning, a lot of people just heard these cut-glass drama school-trained voices and didn't pay any attention to the lyrics, " says Dillie. "We always include something touching too; people for-give you for being rude if you're a little poignant."

The routines are pretty physical too. Dillie's mock Marlene Dietrich number, sung deliberately off-key, is an FA highlight, along with her Down With The Kids rap.

"I make a hideous show of myself. I loathe watching myself on film," she says. ""I think the reason why there'll always be fewer women than men in comedy is that to be funny requires an absence of vanity, and women are brought up to be vain.

"Men can just get on with the business of being funny but women are more self-conscious."

What can people expect from Charm Offensive?

According to Liza, it's "Laughter, silliness, bravery and four letter words sung in glorious harmony."

Adele adds: " More wit, cutting edge lyrics and uber glamour than you can shake a stick at."

And the last word goes to Dillie, who says the show is: "Charm and offence in equal measure - what else?

Listen, trying to explain a Fascinating Aïda song is as bad as trying to explain someone else’s joke. Suffice it to say there’s a wonderful mix of old and new. Come along and find out!"

* Fascinating Aida is at St George's Hall on Friday, February 27. For tickets call (01274) 432000.