Karl Spain ***** 5 Stars
Gilded Balloon 16.15
It’s rare that a well-known comedian refers to me as Rochie, but after this festival I can happily that myself and Karl will remain friends. He lives about three kilometers from my parents house in Limerick/Clare but we had oddly never met before this.
I knew he does the Dolan’s circuit etc and I really enjoy him on the panel shows etc but comedy isn’t really my thing so I rarely go to gigs. Tommy Tiernan was my last gig in UL about 10 years ago I’d say.
Karl was on stage when we arrived, welcoming the audience with a happy smile. Seemingly he’d also been outside flyering pre-show (He does it for the craic, not because he needs it) so one can tell that he loves his job and is honoured to be able to grace the stage and tell a few jokes as his job.
He is a seasoned professional and it comes across thoroughly in his performance.
He can tell jokes about any subject. He is intellectually stimulated by the news and sport and has a sharp, almost improv like mind so he fires back retorts without even thinking about them.
He called my bird a prostitute for the entire show…and that’s always funny!
Speaking to him in Gilded Balloon’s Loft after the show, he recalled how he used to tell jokes to his Mum when she was sick with Parkinson’s. He used create characters, like her doctor or a salesman, to try and make her laugh and make her day a bit better when she was ill. It’s a touching show.
I think that’s what I liked about it the most, it’s a terribly honest show.
You can tell immediately if a story-teller is being honest with you, if they are exaggerating or not, or if they remember the details of the occurrence with emotional accuracy. Karl has the gift of the perception of relaxing on stage and making everyone feel welcome into his thought processes.
It is a great show, at 16.15 in Gilded which is a good time for an experienced Edinburgh planner (10pm-12midnight means choices always have to be made).
I would recommend this show fully. He has become one of my favourite comedians now.
Tiger Paws Junior’s Stories 5 Stars
Tiger Paws Junior 