Tom Stade

Here’s some free advice for comedians thinking of going on tv: make sure you’ve got enough material left for touring.

The last night of Tom Stade’s UK tour at the Norwich Playhouse must have felt like something of a greatest hits retrospective to anyone that has seen him on television in the last couple of years.

You would think that given his promotional material makes proud references to his slots on Comedy Roadshow and Live At The Apollo that he would know better than to retread the material he performed on them, but no.

And that is made all the more disappointing when you consider that the lion’s share of his act consists of hackneyed observations about women talking a lot and men not being interested in shoes.

There were occasional flashes of inspiration, with dark but witty twists in material on America, Afghanistan and Africa, but they were hidden within the shouting and swearing that too often characterises comedians from across the pond.

Much of the audience lapped it up, but it’s always a sign that the laughter has more to do with lubrication than genuine wit when toilet breaks litter the second-half.