Edinburgh Fringe comedy review

‘I can do highbrow,’ insists Josh Jones. ‘I just choose not to.’

It’s a wise move, embracing what he’s good at, just as he leans into his uber-camp delivery. Likewise, he defies his agent’s entreaties to do fewer sex jokes, since he can’t quite help himself. And even though he insists he’s smart, he offers us mounting evidence to the contrary, such as making a hilariously daft mistake on a BBC podcast, then doubling down on it.

This is no-filter comedy, with the buoyant comedian gushing out stories and inner feelings in an uncontrollable torrent. More than one anecdote ends with him crying, and there are a couple of injuries sure to make you go ‘eurgh’, as you both laugh and wince over his pain. 

Jones was clearly born for the stage; that was evident ever since he inappropriately sang the sexed-up version of Lady Marmalade at a school assembly. And his exaggerated mannerisms might be a Carry On screenwriter’s idea of what ‘gay’ is, but he – and the audience – would not deny that it’s great for comic delivery. 

He rattles through his material, too, cramming in the often self-deprecatory routines and bouncing on his feet in his excited rush to talk about himself. It’s so fast-paced he seems to barely use a full stop in the entire show. 

On stage, apparently as he is in life, Jones just gets carried away with things. He’s 29 but comes across as charmingly naive, even when talking about some unusual fetishists he encounters in his Manchester hometown. He weaponises his lack of guile, playing up his innocence. Even when doing those dick jokes, his camp makes it cheeky and juvenile. Yet there are small but telling flashes of petulant anger, too, sometimes, when the world doesn’t quite go his way.

Waste Of Space is an invigorating rush through Jones’s life and a statement of intent from a comic already making inroads into the world of TV. It’s not the tightest of hours, but he steamrollers through it on the powerful force of his personality. We’ll be hearing plenty more from him.

• Josh Jones: Waste of Space is on at Pleasance Courtyard at 8.30pm, 

Review date: 7 Aug 2022
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett
Reviewed at: Pleasance Courtyard