Nick Doody: T'ai-Po

Since Nick Doody's first fringe show Before He Kills Again I would have expected him to have achieved more success than he seems to as he is simply one of the best gimmick-free stand-up comedians you can see at the Fringe.

Doody shines as a writer above all else but his easygoing no-frills approach to delivery puts crowds at ease

T'ai-Po is filled with great gags from start to finish. There is something for everyone - from basic set-ups and punchlines to flourishes of surrealism, meta comedy, satire and a splash of darkness for good measure. It's all written in a consistent and coherent tone.

The show is cut into bite size pieces with topics as varied as marathons, parenthood, the election and airport luggage. From that list you might worry that he is just another observational comedian but his approach to these topics is often unique - showing passion when appropriate and pointing something out with common sense in order to mine it for laughs.

Doody shines as a writer above all else but his easygoing no-frills approach to delivery puts crowds at ease. There isn't much audience interaction but there is some trolling I really appreciated and would like to see him develop this more.

With this all in mind I find it galling that the performance I saw wasn’t better attended. So, get yourself down to the Cannon’s Gait, hear some great jokes, put some money in the bucket and support a fantastic stand-up comedian.