Gig review by Steve Bennett

As a childhood Kurdish refugee to Britain and the son of an Iraqi freedom fighter who took on Saddam Hussein, Kae Kurd has a unique story to tell and an unusual point of view.

Unfortunately, he only rarely gives us a glimpse of that in a Latitude set that errs so far on the side of caution that much of it becomes bland. He complains about gentrification with quips about halloumi and gangstas on his estate ordering fancy coffees. He sneers at Leave voters who claim 'we' won two world wars – as if they did anything. He wonders where our hoverboards are now it's 2019 and jokes that his phone contracts show he can't be commitment-phobic.

Personal material is largely confined to being lactose intolerant, living with his parents and once being overweight and the fat-shaming he suffered. He has some pretty funny material on this, not least the shame in ordering soy milk and the 'psychological rent' he has to pay for his board, but the premises these are built on are not especially distinctive. 

Kae has all the delivery skills anyone could hope for - friendly, confident and with a great command of the voices he gives to all the supporting characters in his stories. Yet being personable only goes so far, and while there need be no expectation that he mine his background for laughs, the broad, familiar material he has plumped for means that of all the dozens of comics at this festival, he won't dwell in the memory. 
 

Review date: 21 Jul 2019
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett
Reviewed at: Latitude