Review by Julian Hall

More confident and relaxed than the last time I saw him five years ago, Chris McCausald never threatens to raise the Roof but it offers a show consistent in provoking laughter and warmth.

The central theme is an argument between McCausland and his girlfriend over something trivial, causing him to question if he is the titular emotional retard and generally have a scoot around the theme of emotions. This is not before he has justified the use of the word retard in his title.

The stimulus for this justification is a plaintive email a woman sends him after she sees his promotional material for his London previews. Echoing the rhythm of some of the other portions of the show, he dips in and out of what the email says before he gets to the crux of the matter, the usage and ownership of words.

Elsewhere in his set it's clear that McCausland owns a few words himself, a dab hand with a pleasing metaphor here and a clever coupling there, for example, noting that Gay Pride is a double anathema for the Catholic church.

Perhaps if the start hadn't shimmied about so much and supplied a few comedy red herrings (such as the Johnny Depp-wheelie bin narrative… yes you had to be there) there would be even more to commend this show. As it is it is hearty and witty and hints at better things to come.

Review date: 18 Aug 2010
Reviewed by: Julian Hall