Comedy review: Craig Campbell, Brunton Theatre, Musselburgh

IN AN interview last year, rapid-fire gagsmith Stewart Francis insisted he had little time for the breed of stand-up storytellers. He felt “distracted” by such “self-indulgent” comedians.

Clearly he’s made an exception for fellow UK-based Canadian Craig Campbell, given that the one-liner king sat chortling in the back row during his buddy’s near two-hour set.

Having made the move out of London to Devon, the calm rural life hasn’t exactly wound Campbell down.

Bounding on to his stage dressed like he doesn’t give a hoot (tight blue t-shirt, khaki shorts, skeletoes), his demeanour suggests something else: every fibre in the Campbell frame is being stretched to breaking point in order to make each second a memorable one for his crowd.

Part one of this show is a global travelogue around his audience, unveiling fellow Canadians and a honeymooning Swedish couple which trigger off some amusing if sweeping national tropes: Norwegians are uber-passive and Aussies are a bit bawdy, while the Finns and Scots are, yep you guessed it, fond of alcohol. The superior second half has Campbell in full-throttle anecdotal mode, delivering surely not 100 per cent true tales about a teenage Halloween prank and a brush with the law when he was stopped on his motorbike for “dazzling” oncoming traffic.

While unadulterated hilarity is not as frequent here as in previous outings (a glorious analogy about the shift in human rights away from the law-abiding is one exception), the sheer vibrancy and warm humility of a Craig Campbell show can’t fail to soothe the soul.

Rating: ***