Review by Bruce Dessau

Some comedians are suited to the canvas-covered crowd-pleasing festival gig and some, however talented, aren't. Sara Pascoe falls into the second category. She is a feisty, passive-aggressive stand-up with an enticing streak of twisted humour, but just after lunch this was not what the families and sun-kissed shade-hunters wanted.

It is never a good sign when your opening gambit of 'I don't actually do jokes' is met with funereal silence. This kind of arch anti-comedy might work at your own Edinburgh gig but rarely in front of a non-partisan demographic that has come precisely for jokes.

Pascoe has been on the circuit for a while now and she is getting progressively closer to finding a distinctive voice. Like Jack Whitehall in his early days, there is a bit of Russell Brand here, a little bit of Stewart Lee there. Pascoe mixes things up further with a bit of Sarah Silverman's non-PC confessional agenda.

Material includes 9/11, iPhones, Richard Dawkins and an anorexia quip which does have a genuine punchline, albeit one that many may see coming. There was also a decent Take That riff about the band being like Jesus, but it would have had more of a kick if it had taken into account the topical angle of Robbie Williams’ second coming.

While she was patently glad to get offstage there was certainly plenty of promise here. When Pascoe manages to get the right tone – and the right audience – she will be a force to be reckoned with.

Review date: 25 Jul 2010
Reviewed by: Bruce Dessau