Last week Barry Cryer praised young comics for their ability to incorporate hard-hitting issues into very funny sets. It’s true: since Bridget Christie won the Foster’s Edinburgh Comedy award in 2013 with her high-fun show on feminism, more performers have dared to combine the silly and the serious with real comic punch.
One of the best examples this year is Felicity Ward, whose show What If There Is No Toilet? addresses the potentially unpromising topics of irritable bowel syndrome and anxiety. Flanked on stage by a toilet and pyramids of loo rolls, she immediately provides a happy and easy environment for her audience: acknowledging sarcastically that IBS is “the sexiest of syndromes”, and introducing us to “Beryl”, the disparaging voice in her head that leads her towards panic attacks. It’s a show that whips through personal anecdotes and smartly written analogies, putting her physical and mental health issues into relatable and punchline-packed bundles.
Also noteworthy is Mae Martin (4 stars, City Cafe) whose show Us covers sexuality in an effortlessly amusing way. With no histrionics and no tricks, on a blank stage set on the Free Fringe, she coolly takes us through the labels we put on people — gay, straight, bi, etc — and explores their impact. It’s predominantly a collection of personal stories: Martin’s friends were recently dismayed when “gay Mae” started looking for men on Tinder; her characterisation of her Canadian parents is priceless as she recounts their disarming openness. Martin’s gentle charm makes it all highly watchable, while her wider thoughtfulness nudges Us into something rather important, too.
Special mentions, too, to Beth Vyse, Tez Ilyas and Larry Dean, whose shows about breast cancer, Islam and homosexuality, respectively, have provided some of the happiest rooms I’ve been in this month. Cryer is right to be encouraged.
Box office: 0131 556 6550, to Aug 31