Ian Waller and his family enjoy an evening of comedy of one of Bristol’s best venues
“It’s nice to be here, Bristol,” said Mark Steel, before adding, “Saying that, I’ve been here all day and it is starting to wear off…”
And to be fair, he was looking a bit tired, perhaps because he’d already performed a matinee the same day and maybe the effort was a bit too much.
Still, this was Mark Steel, renowned leftie comic, razor sharp wit of numerous panel shows, star of the hit Radio 4 series Mark Steel’s In Town and top stand-up too. So no worries, he’ll be fine, and anyway, I’d been really looking forward to this one. So much so, in fact, that I’d brought my wife and teenage son with me, keen for them to enjoy one of my favourite comics.
You can probably sense that ‘however’ coming up, but hang on just a while because there is good stuff first…
I always enjoy a visit to the Tobacco Factory where my wife and I have seen some of the best, funniest and most innovative theatre of recent years. What’s more, the welcome is friendly, there’s plenty of places to eat before the show on the nearby Southville high street and you can usually, just about, find a parking space.
For Mark Steel, even with loads of extra seats brought in, it was a big old sell-out – always a good sign. And bang on eight, he was on stage, straight in politics and how crap the Government is, and how on earth did we end up with the likes of Boris and Truss in charge. Yes, it was predictable cannon-fodder for a comedian of Steel’s wit and experience, but still great stuff, with the packed crowd – me included – laughing along, and the fella behind me telling his partner that the whole thing was genius!
From there it was full blast into the pandemic, Boris’s lies and more Tory bashing, before the evening move on to foreign travel, Steel’s search for his natural mother (he was adopted at birth) and even a few comedy songs thrown in too. However (see, I said it was coming), somehow, it all started to get a bit, well, stunted, dated and tired.
There was still plenty to laugh it – particularly for that bloke behind me – but the other side came from my teenage son who, when I asked him during the interval what he thought, answered, “It’s just an old man moaning about things, plus any comedian who is still going on about the pandemic is really short on material.”
And he was right – but so was that bloke sitting behind me. The truth was that Mark Steel, while part of his act was laughing at old style comedians, has become one himself. The material, while funny, was a bit safe and predictable. There were even a few ‘best of’ moments with recollections of old mates Linda Hardy and Jeremy Hardy, all undoubtedly very heartfelt and able to elicit a few ‘ahhs’ from the audience but barely recent events.
In fact, by the end, I was with my son. While there were still laughs to be had, the show just went on a little too long and even Mr Steel himself seemed to be losing his energy.
I still look forward to his appearance on panel shows – shorter performances with focused material – and on the radio, but while I laughed at times, it was still a little disappointing.
There’s always so much to look forward to at the Tobacco Factory. For more information and to book tickets, go to https://tobaccofactorytheatres.com/