Review by Graeme Connelly

Casually strolling on to the stage with a huge and affectionate smile, Francesco De Carlo obviously has a lot of personality. It oozes from him like the watery stuff from a good quality buffalo mozzarella.

De Carlo introduces himself as an Italian comic who doesn’t speak English, so whether he has memorised this from a script or it’s a little white lie isn’t immediately apparent. Of course he speaks enough English for a one hour gig, but as the occasional chunks of audience banter soar over his head it becomes clear he's not fluent. Performing a stand-up gig in a secondary language is a huge challenge, although the ability to do so doesn’t make it automatically funny.

As expected, observations of the world from the Italian psyche form the main body of this show: women, football, Italian politics, the pope, Mafioso, Italian culture in general and how it differs from the British perspective. A few old jokes are rehashed with an Italian accent although with a slightly different twang, the content is the same.

Some topical points are raised and he does hold his own in producing some nicely crafted jokes from the standard material. The delivery is lacking, however. Joke after joke fails to really hit home, the audience know it is funny, and laughs politely at the right places but it could have been funnier.

De Carlo's unique selling point is the fact he is Italian. He returns again and again to how he notices Britain through Italian eyes. A few big laughs are gained from mispronouncing a few choice words. It is simple but sweet humour. The novelty does wear off soon, however. What is left is a charismatic and engaging young man who doesn’t produce a large amount of laughs but a lot of smiles. Facts and figures about Italy were thrown around proudly, but they weren’t funny.

An interest in Italy is almost essential to really enjoy an hour with De Carlo. He is clearly a talented chap and pleasant to listen to. Maybe a little more work on the language will give him that edge that he must have in his home country to have made it this far. Until then awesome Italian comic equals run of the mill British one.

Review date: 19 Aug 2014
Reviewed by: Graeme Connelly
Reviewed at: Pleasance Courtyard