Up for the first of the two hours was John Robins, who beguiled the audience with his laid back delivery before beginning to create some bizarre mind pictures using ingenious word-play. Taking us on a journey from a fraught adolescence past the point of hitting 30, he circles around a particular day in his 20s which he identifies as the happiest day of his life.
Robins’ comedy is rather like one of those skeleton clocks in that he displays the mechanics of the process as part of the performance, making additional humour out of this being a preview show. His self-deprecating style is engaging and has the sort of charm that carries his audience with him.
There is something very satisfying about watching someone juggle with language the way John Robins does. It is the sort of humour that has more of a slow-burn than an explosive effect and that more often gets groans and chuckles rather than full on laughter, which must make it hard to judge. It is, we are told, topical in a way that should not be taken internally, but it nonetheless ends up under the skin. Don’t expect to be rolling in the aisles, but be prepared for an aching jaw from a lot of ridiculous grinning.
James Acaster who followed after an interval is in some ways similar, in that he uses very visual language, but he has a more edgy delivery. He also uses some visual gags and a couple of physical props.
The basis on which this routine is constructed is a supposed obsession with clearing the name of Yoko Ono for the breakup of the Beatles. Comparisons with the band on the Titanic, who probably didn’t like the direction their act was taking but carried on playing together anyway, were the stuff of comedy genius. Here is someone who really gets hold of an idea and runs with it, and once off the ground it did fly like a kite, bobbing about around the audience’s heads and keeping us wondering what direction it might take next.
We might suspect something a little disingenuous about his sudden realisation that he was delivering this material in the Beatles’ home city, but who could blame him for claiming a few more comedy miles from the irony of doing it here.
James Acaster has the kind of surreal view of the world that makes for an unpredictable but mesmerising performance and it certainly hit the mark pretty frequently during the hour long set, getting a good reaction from what seemed a slightly dry crowd.
John Robins and James Acaster are both appearing at the Edinburgh Fringe (Pleasance Courtyard) on most evenings from 31st July to 25th August 2013
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