Wil Anderson - Wilosophy

Wil Anderson is quite simply the best stand-up I have ever seen. Moving through material at a breathtaking pace, the jokes come quick and fast with almost every sentence generating at least one laugh from the packed audience. Scarcely pausing for breath, Anderson holds the stage with an amazing energy, captivating the audience and rousing the audience into a frenzy of excitement. By the time it comes to the end of the show, they are roaring in the aisles and drumming the floor with their feet, not willing to let him go.

A seasoned pro at stand-up, Anderson has previously been nominated for a Perrier Award, named GQ's Comedic Talent of the Year, and sold out venues across the world. It is easy to see why. He has such an ease on stage that it never appears like a “performance” as such; more like a fantastically witty chat with a friend. Indeed, there is an air of spontaneity present that really lifts the show. On the evening I watched, two separate latecomers entered and Anderson broke out of his routine to banter with both of them, unleashing new anecdotes and jokes based entirely around their answers.

He crams many topics into his hour, ranging from obese children to terrorism, gay marriages to the differences between Aussies and Scots. There is a slight running theme of personal responsibility throughout his topics and they certainly flow very well together, despite being seemingly random.

Although there is a touch of unashamed macho-ness about some of his humour, Anderson actually achieves something deeper than mere laughs and delivers something rather profound. As strange as it seems, this is a stand-up who is actually rather inspirational. He has a knack of finding truths in things that, when explained, are blindingly obvious and rather funny. Bad logic and poor argument are both discussed, and there are two hilarious exchanges with God over his Facebook page and an extended conversation over the day He designed the human body with Anderson pointing out some of the flaws in the design.

When leaving the venue I saw Anderson being beseiged by fans for photos and autographs and I realised that he does fit the image of the person you'd like as a best friend. He'd make you laugh for hours on end, whilst also sorting out your life with some impenetrable truths. For an hour of rich comic insight, head down to the Cow Barn straight away. You really won't regret it.