Show Rating:

Colin Murphy is a solid, reliable comic producing a sold, reliable hour of comedy. But with no big ideas, his show lacks the sense of occasion to stand out in a crowded Fringe.

He banters with the audience for a bit, neither being flummoxed by their sometimes odd answers but never finding comedy gold there, either, before moving onto material from the sturdiest pillars of stand-up: drinking, religion and parenthood.

There's not much structure to it, the Miraculous of the title eventually being covered by a segment on saints and the trite conclusion that miracles are found in the small, everyday actions as much as in the big gestures of, say, martydom.

Much of the rest of his material on Catholicism is not so much about the ideas of the faith, but a nicely anecdotal story about joining the throngs of people during the Pope's only visit to Ireland.

On other matters, we hear of Americans' odd relationship with alcohol, or the shabbiness of Belfast zoo, or how you could leave your front door unlocked in the Fifties because there was nothing worth nicking then.

Murphy's an efficient, motor-mouthed mirth-maker, a chummy raconteur with a nicely animated delivery, attributes conspire to give the stories an easy, if insubstantial wit.

This material would be a fine addition to any comedy club bill, but for an hour-long show, you'd probably be better seeking something more ambitious.