| 12 August 2011
Back for the second year with another solo show is Joe Wilkinson, the ageing London lad with that affected London-casual, ear-flicking, hair-sweeping, mumbling swagger. What a Larry. He’s cool, though, because you can’t tell if he’s mocking all that or not. He starred in a BBC3 sitcom Him & Her, came runner-up in So You Think You’re Funny? and won Hackney Empire’s New Act of the Year award. He comes in for hugs from the audience.
He’s affable and his humour is affable, with observational jokes about lame things, like having to get off the underground because someone had done a turd in the carriage, or being really awkward with strippers on his mate’s stag night. Joe is another one of those down-to-earth charmers, quirking up the everyday mundane stuff in his/our lives into silly eccentricity. It’s not a groundbreaking format but he works it; he’s a natural.
The material is mostly about being an unmarried, ‘unmanly’ man heading towards middle age, and the brunt of seeking approval from parents and the ridiculous conversations between them. Ahh, mums and dads. Will you always be a source of material to comedians?
One point: Second time I’ve heard the comedian imply that the riots have started because the comedians have left London. Tom Bell did that one yesterday. Look out!
Joe Wilkinson: My Mum’s Called Stella and My Dad’s Called Brian, Pleasance Courtyard, 12-28 Aug, 5.45pm
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