After the interval the show was slightly overrunning so Nelson kept his bantz to a minimum and concentrated on getting the names right. First up after was Darren Walsh. As every critic probably says, Walsh is basically a younger, taller Tim Vine. But alongside the punning wordplay he increasingly harnesses multi-media. His ten-minute set included interaction with video footage and audio. This is the sort of thing that makes me tense in case everything crashes, but the technology worked perfectly and suggested that maybe the Vine comparisons will soon be redundant.
Tom Little, the Leicester Mercury Comedian of the Year 2015, was the oddball of the night. A nervy, quirky gabbler his brief set was mainly based around attempting to spell the word “yoghurt”. It was a deceptively clever idea with a neat callback, but in some ways his eccentricity - was it real or a character? – made it hard for the audience to embrace his lunacy fully. He was on safer ground with an old comedic faithful, discussing whether Jaffa cakes are cake or biscuit, suggesting that in a longer slot he can win fans over with bankers and then get away with being more creatively adventurous.
Penultimate act Sofie Hagen is another performer on a roll, coming here having just finished a run on London. The Foster’s Best Newcomer included the excerpt from her show about peeing on a stranger - you really need to see the whole show for the full context. But here the routine had an added resonance as she revealed that the incident actually occurred at the Leicester Festival and the other un-named person involved was a comedian. I was tempted to run off and start googling, but first there was one more act.
After being worried about failing technology earlier it was The Boy With Tape On His Face who had the problem. He might be a silent act, but he was not supposed to be this silent - his musical soundtrack was not playing. A few wiggles of a wire attached to his iPod and he was in business though.
After a solo routine with two oven gloves miming to Lionel Richie – Endless Glove? – members of the audiences were invited up to take part. Some were more willing than others. One man was dragged up and togged up in extra clothes and when he realised he had to do a Full Monty strip he scarpered faster than Usain Bolt. Others were more sporting and got stuck into their roles without ever upstaging the star.
A sexy, silly, fluffy puppet double act will stick in my mind for a long time. As will the memory of Lee Nelson introducing the wrong act. But apart from giving everyone a great time, this preview proved that sometimes in comedy getting things wrong can be just as funny as getting things right.
The Leicester Comedy Festival runs from February 3 - 21. More info here.
