Seven Englishmen, an Essex girl and a Northern Irishman walk into a casino. Actually, the joke amongst the "Best of British" 5 Star Comedy Preview on Thursday night was the speed of SkyCity Theatre's lifts, but that's not quite as catchy.
Auckland is awash with travelling comics as the New Zealand International Comedy Festival whirls into life, and as seasoned connoisseurs, we realise there are some givens: the usual digs about travel, our accent, and Lord of the Rings. It was no surprise to hear them all rolled out here, but a delight to note some golden observations amongst the predictable.
Chris Martin (yes, he says, the last month has been hell. No, he doesn't know how Gwyneth is) was full of sharp insights. From a hairy situation with his new live-in girlfriend, to his intervention between Auckland and its sushi shop addiction - you could see the waves of recognition wash over the audience as the oh-so-likeable man-child coolly unleashed.
His laidback approach was complemented by the sweetly-posh John Robins and his "coffee ponce" jibes directed the way of the local audience, and the lone female, Sara Pascoe. Her's was a refreshing voice among the testosterone, and while her "retro" menstruation jokes might have made a number of men in the audience wince, this comedian/actress/writer's gentle coaxing of a gag was delightful.
Like any comedy show these days, some of it was side-splitting stuff. And some of it was just grumpy, middle-aged men yelling at the audience.
