thu 15/05/2025

Comedy Reviews

Ross Noble, Apollo

Veronica Lee

"The Bible; it goes on and on and on," says Ross Noble. "And don’t they annoy you, those people who go on and on and on..." Funny that, because the Northumbrian comic goes on and on and on himself, and by the end of this lengthy gig last night I felt like I was trapped in a broken lift with a 19th-hole bore.

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Sean Hughes, Greenwich Theatre

Veronica Lee

The presence of an ellipsis in the title of Sean Hughes’ new show, What I Meant to Say Was..., is a clue to how the evening proceeds. He comes on stage with no announcement, chats for 90 minutes about this and that, rambles a bit when he loses his thread and frequently goes off at a tangent when he interacts with the audience. He even tells us he always talks rubbish for the 15 minutes and the show proper will begin after then.

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Ed Byrne, Vaudeville Theatre

Veronica Lee

It says much for Ed Byrne’s talents as a stand-up that he can make his show Different Class, which he first performed a year ago, feel fresh and current. But with topical gags aplenty - many of which must have been written just hours before he took the stage at the Vaudeville Theatre in London, where is doing a month-long residency - it feels bang up to the minute.

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