James Christopher’s tactic of combining the show titles of award-winning comedians seems a strange choice. He refers to successful acts throughout the 50 minute stand-up set, usually poking fun at obvious targets such as Michael McIntyre and shares with the audience a list of his least favourite types of comedy. He sometimes sarcastically acknowledges that it probably just makes him sound a bit jealous, performing as he is in a sparsely attended underground venue, but it’s not really clear what he’s trying to achieve by this.
He succeeds neither in ridiculing his better known contemporaries nor in emulating their styles and this results in a very odd atmosphere that’s really quite hard to define. Imagine a little known pop artist noticing that Lady Gaga’s doing very well for herself, performing a gently scathing parody and then expecting to be appreciated as a new musician in her own right. You’re correct – that is very hard to imagine. The tone of Bring Me the Head of Russell Kane is just as difficult to put your finger on.
That said, Christopher is a likeable chap who gets on easily with his audience and the small crowd quickly warms to him. He sometimes drifts away from his set to have a chat with an audience member. Not the sort of pre-prepared, one-sided exchange most comedians find themselves dealing out day after day, but a fresh, friendly conversation.
There are some great moments dotted throughout the show, such as his physical comedy segment and his jazz-based analogy for a comedian rushing ahead to a punch line. However, sadly they don’t appear with much consistency. The show draws to a close and Christopher awards a crushed beer can (a reference to the Fosters Comedy Award) to a worthy audience member who leaves it on a seat on the way out. He might want to hold on to that - it could be the closest he’ll get to the real thing.
