Unfortunately we had to miss the last Screaming Blue Murder so this was our first burst of SBM comedy for a month. Our host as usual was the extremely funny Dan Evans, who coped manfully with the lady who wanted him to buy a new suit (it’s true, he has been wearing it for at least five years now) and who scoffed at his regular attempt to flog a few books. Admirably he tried out some new material but it kind of fell by the wayside so he reverted to the tried and tested stuff which certainly helped the newbies warm the place up.

The three acts consisted of one new one to us and two we had seen before but a long time ago – before I started blogging this regular comedic feast. First up was Nathan Caton, who we hadn’t seen before, and he is a total breath of fresh air. Original, inventive material combined with a likeable personality and a very subtle way of making his point. He had some brilliant anti-racist scenarios which led us all down the garden path beautifully, like the little old lady who doesn’t like to say “black”; some great “your mum” lines; and new insights into dealing with an upstart younger brother. Frankly, we could have watched him all night long.

Our second act was Howard Read, who we didn’t remember until his act started, and then it all came flooding back and I think it was identical to the one we saw a couple of years ago. He has a very quiet, stylish, respectable persona, which lends itself well to the main thrust of his act, which is how having children has ruined his life. His comic songs are extremely funny, and will certainly make you think again about ways to keep the kids quiet when they should be asleep.

Last up was Phil Nichol, again I was expecting him to be new to us, but when he came on stage I instantly recognised his manic Canadian-based audience interaction from an SBM session a few years ago. He’s loud, out-of-control, constantly surprising, and very funny. I really liked his circle of London accents, and his comedy music is an assault on the senses (in a good way). It felt like his act just went too quickly.

So all in all a very good night as usual, with a very nicely balanced programme. Numbers this season still seem a bit down at the moment, you can’t get better value for your comic pound than coming to this show, so get booking!