With newspapers shrinking and the number of shows increasing it has been particularly hard for less-established Edinburgh Fringe acts to get press coverage this year. Or even get press into their shows. I don't know how many critics have seen Scott Bennett yet, but if they haven't they are missing a treat.

The Yorkshire comic doesn't break any artistic barriers, he doesn't have a high concept show, he doesn't dress up, he simply tells funny jokes about his life for the best part of an hour. It's totally relatable. He might be midlife crisis man personified but the two people in front of me who were barely out of their teens were nearly falling off their chairs they were laughing so hard.

Bennett does have a story on which to hang his gags. He decided to take the chance and quit his job as a production designer and go full-time as a comedian recently as he approached his forties. Hence the title of Leap Year. So chunks of material are about the safe career and life at home he was leaving behind and how having a young family to support it was a bit of a risk and he couldn't have done it if his wife Jemma was not right behind him.

In fact he talks so much about Jemma being right behind him you almost expect her to come onstage at some point. Instead he paints a vivid picture of their relationship. They met as students, he explains, and have been together ever since through thick and thin. In some ways, he points out, it is harder for her. He is out there, supporting Rob Brydon and writing for Chris Ramsey, she is the one left at home.

His jokes are, well, what can I say, they are proper meat-and-two-veg jokes. Crowdpleasing jokes that you might hear on Live at the Apollo (he claims to have failed his audition - maybe they should see him again). About everyday things such as bringing up babies and keeping romance alive. About hiding in the loft for a bit of peace and quiet and spa weekends. For those that can't afford to swim with dolphins Bennett has a budget option involving something edible that you can try at home. I expect a lot of his new fans did. 

The hit-rate is strong and as I said, while this might not be a high concept show, it does get more candid when he talks about an intimate operation he had as a teenager. Bennett jokes during his set that his stand-up career is a hobby that has got out of hand. If that's the case Leap Year suggests that it is soon going to get even more out of hand. 

Until August 26. Info here.

Read more Edinburgh Fringe reviews here.

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