Nick Wilty – Original Review
Note: This review is from 2009
Review by Steve Bennett
Wilty has the sort of easy-going, blokey style that could convince a hundred bar-room loudmouths that they could oh-so easily become stand-ups. They'd be wrong.For while Wilty makes it all seem so effortless, just like that witty mate shooting the breeze in the pub, he's a remarkably skillful comic, pinpointing the humour in any anecdote and delivering it with brilliant accuracy.
And he has plenty of tales to tell, too. As the most widely travelled act on the circuit, he has a lifetime of experiences from across the globe that he can relate to grateful audiences. These are not involved stories, merely pegs on which to hang his one-liners, some of which are reasonably straightforward, but other of which conceal a delicious twist.
On stage he might seem reassuringly old school - cocky and self-deprecating in equal measures, while never missing the opportunity for a quick one-liner or sly insult - but it proves devastatingly effective, and more than a bit deceptive.
For this Jack-the-lad exterior hides a sharp, imaginative comic mind, capable of producing the sort of subtle, postmodernist comment you might more likely expect from a well-spoken Oxbridge type. t's a talent that allows him to straddle highbrow and lowbrow audience with equal aplomb.
In short, this accomplished comic, with a sizeable, ever-changing repertoire, is virtually guaranteed to please.
Review date: 1 Apr 2009
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett
