Show Rating:

Neil Delamare has put together a slick show. He is a smooth talker and enjoys himself enormously, which puts the audience at ease and the hour slides past very comfortably.

He compered himself into the show for about ten minutes, where-ya-from, what’s ya name, which established there was a good posse of Irish fans and helped to find 14 -year-old Calum, visiting his auntie, and he became quite a focus. Relaxed and friendly, he recognised his duty to keep the laughs coming.

We needn’t dwell on the history of the Vikings, genuinely fascinating though it is, with a brief digression into language, a look at the splendidly costumed Minnesota Viking football team and their scantily attired cheerleaders and some maps.

The comedy emerges from playing with the audience, predicting individual reactions and expectations. If you’ve seen a lot of comedy, you might feel there are too many easy references that are the stock-in-trade of club compering, but used at exactly the right time with great aplomb.

He is an accomplished comic who gives a polished and enjoyable performance, but despite the visual aids, this felt more like a well practised extended club set, but a bit glib for an Edinburgh show.

Reviewed by: Julian Chambers