Our Cog Night was a trip to swanky King’s Place to see a triple-bill of comedy warm-ups.
Edinburgh warm up at King’s Place
This was a warm-up for Edinburgh, a chance for established comedians to try out their material in from of an audience.
The event has been billed to take place in a relatively small room in King’s Place. But technical difficulties, or perhaps a desire to sell more tickets had moved it into the main concert hall. The hall isn’t huge but it was far from full (hardly the atmosphere you’ want if you were on stage).
The line-up for this intimidatingly cavernous space was all male: Tom Deacon: Indecisive; Russell Kane: Human Dressage; and Fergus Craig Still Watches Neighbours.
I vaguely remember Fergus Craig who’s show was clips from Neighbours. I remember it being cleverly constructed, like a university project about how to write and perform a winning Edinburgh show.
And I can’t remember much at all about Chortle Student Award winner Tom Deacon, other than him being keen to call on almost every trope of laddish stand-up. Not my thing but lots of people seemed to enjoy it.
But I do remember Russel Kane. Maybe his zeitgeist capturing act has bumped other memories from my brain.
His show was about the preening of modern man, the ambiguity of sexuality and the confusion it causes between the generations.
The way he contorted his entire body, becoming his father and delivering a monologue of confusion of disappointment and anger, was a wonder to behold. The winding anecdote that ends with his nan flinging open his bedroom door, made me physically recoil (sensing the truth in the story).
What a treat to see this Perrier winning show, titled Human Dressage, in its unpolished state.