Next up was musical comic David Jordan. Jordan is a big man and makes sure he gets plenty of pre-emptive laughs out of his size, in particular with his song about being addicted to junk food. It’s hard to be bored by rapidfire comic songs and Jordan didn’t disappoint, with some quick tunes and smart lyrics. Maybe you could see the punchline coming a little too often but he also had some quirky original moments. Perhaps a director could point out the bits the don’t work so well and maybe nudge Jordan in a more quirky Flight of the Conchords direction.
Dan Audritt was a new name but one I think we will be coming across again. He is from Swindon which also produced Mark Lamarr and while Audritt is not as cynical as the erstwhile fifties throwback he did have a winning wit about him as he played it very much low status and made himself the butt of his humour. He was not exactly laid back, but sometimes he undersold his gags and the audience missed the nuance. This was a particular problem when it came to his final joke, which was a callback to a previous gag that felt slightly flat. There was also a quickie that was a little too close to an old Woody Allen line about sex being a beautiful thing between two people. But there was enough here to mark Audritt out as someone with potential.
And so after another break the final section was wall-to-wall face-fuzz. Darren Harriott had the biggest beard and got some of the biggest laughs of the night with stories about his family and how he is a success compared to his wayward siblings. He crammed a lot into his brief set, from quips about flatsharing to a very strong routine about Rastafarianism – “Christianity but with more Rizlas”. Harriott, a new name to me, is definitely going to make an impact. On another night he might have won, but instead picked up second place.
The final act, Gabriel Ebulue, opened with an ad lib, “two in a row”. It wasn’t initially clear whether he was referring to being black or having a beard, but it got a laugh and that was the main thing. Ebulue’s successful schtick was about upending expectations. He turned out to be a massive Morrissey fan and also apparently likes hardcore punk. He was not afraid to go into darker areas too, touching on how he often inevitably gets mistaken for a muslim. Ebulue refreshingly steered away from cliched routines and stereotypes, there just weren’t quite enough laughs here for a higher placing, but he picked up third prize. Advice for upcoming comics? Ditch those razor blades now.
Picture of Eshaan Akbar by KROD photography (www.krodphotogaphy.com)
