Student comedy awards 2005

Bristol heat

Torquay-based student teacher Kai Barron triumphed in the West Country heat of the Chortle Student Comedy Award last night.

Barron, who has been performing comedy for about two year and runs the Gagging  For It club in his home town, now goes forward to the final in London on April 25.

Three of the contenders dropped out of this rescheduled heat, held in Jesters comedy club in Bristol, at the last minute, allowing the remaining competitors longer stage time in which to impress.

They were:

Glyn Richards (Southampton Uni): His nicely low-key, modest demeanour camouflages some surprisingly laddish material about ex-girlfriends, fat lasses and (unedifyingly) Rampant Rabbit sex toys. But that’s only one aspect of his scattergun style, which also embraces deliberately bad puns in the Tim Vine vein and entertaining non-sequiteurs. His easy-going wit manages to hold this disparate range together, but his job would be made easier with a more clearly-defined comic voice.

Kai Barron (Devon Secondary Teacher Training Group): A powerful bundle of energy, Barron strong and stupid opening, as he pounds and postures across the stage with an empty cornflakes box as his prop, sets the tone for this reckless celebration of punnery and daftness. Not all of it works – a weak, forced joke about working in a currency exchange, for example, could never meet the build-up it gets – but when it does, it’s plain, unpretentious fun.

Luke Catterson (Southampton Uni): Though he starts with a tired pub gag, this comparative novice quickly establishes himself as a vibrant storyteller with a wry, cynical streak. He evokes some engaging imagery, and a couple of nice twists on old ideas mix well with the more quirky, individual tales he tells. Another strong contender.

Iszi Lawrence (Bristol Uni): A breezy, upbeat act, Lawrence demonstrates a fair few flickers of imaginative wordplay, although the punchline-laden set does feature its share of weaker gags too. However, she’s let down by an over-rehearsed style, that makes this seem more like a performance piece than the natural, one-sided chat that defines the best stand-up.

Steve Bennett
March 23, 2005