The title of the show is taken from an incident in which Gamble was trapped in
There was also a selection of material about, variously, sex and relationships (on which he had a refreshingly non-macho take), loneliness on tour and his Dad’s relationship with his cat. All of these were slick and well presented, delivered with style.
Gamble’s stage presence was excellent, and it was clear he’s a well established performer. He seems most happy and confident while interacting with the audience. I liked his style of doing so very much - it felt inclusive but still cheeky and fun. He also correctly called out a woman’s description of Cowley as 'bohemian' as being a euphemism, which went down a storm with the local audience.
Gamble seems like a safe pair of hands on stage. While it’s by no means family material, it’s very inoffensive comedy, and not niche in its interests. Blizzard was warm and fun - not spiky and difficult or overly clever. It’s the kind of show I would happily take my parents to, or a friend giving stand up another go after a bad experience at a uni comedy night.
I liked that the show wasn’t too clever-clever, but I would maybe have appreciated more of a narrative or thematic through-line to the action. While I enjoyed the show a lot, it didn’t feel like it was making any kind of wider point - it was just an hour and a half of amiable storytelling.
I asked my husband what he thought of the show on the bus home. He said, 'Yeah, it was good. I laughed a lot. My face hurts.' There’s not a lot more you can ask of a comedy show than that.