Lucy Porter

A few years away from stand-up has dented none of Lucy Porter’s charm - she remains as funny and engaging as ever.

It has, however, given her a new vein of material which an appreciative audience at Norwich Playhouse were treated to on Saturday.

Porter has a disarming style: a free-flowing monologue that has diversions within diversions, all delivered with a chirpy tone and a cheeky smile. It allows her to get away with gags and visceral imagery that might seem crude from other comics, so when she discusses childbirth and the after effects in personal detail we go along with her rather than run for the exit.

Her new-found motherhood forms the backbone of the new show, but it serves mostly as a foil for broader material - including an obsession with Argos website customer reviews, some of which are close to being a new form of haiku.

She also details her search for new friends as her trusted partners from the past settle in to their own lives, an adventure that takes a slightly unexpected twist.

This is a welcome return from one of the most likeable comics on the scene, a rich and gentle evening of funny storytelling that feels delightfully free of artifice.