Comedy review: Gilded Comedy Gala, Edinburgh

Near the climax of this comedy gala celebrating the Usher Hall’s centenary, compère Arthur Smith mused on its future. Would people be back in another hundred years to mark that event with more laughter?

Headliner Dylan Moran was, as always, the antithesis of boring. Picture: Phil Wilkinson

Gilded Comedy Gala - Usher Hall, Edinburgh

* * *

Here’s another question: will future organisers be able to dig up a couple of 22nd century women to take part? The withdrawal of Doon Mackichan left us with an all-bloke line-up, even if gender was ultimately the only thing which bonded those acts.

Bookending the gig were Barry Cryer and Ronnie Golden, musical comedy old-timers whose numbers touched on memory loss, euthanasia and the need for peace and quiet, surrounded by one beautifully corny gag after another.

Phill Jupitus giggled his own way through fairly humdrum material about his daughters and a Welsh porn star, but ended warmly with an unaccompanied Ae Fond Kiss.

Rich Hall pondered online dating before launching into his song about women from strange-sounding Scottish towns while headliner Dylan Moran attempted to instil a little topicality into proceedings with musings about Putin and Scottish independence.

The Edinburgh-based Irishman is, of course, incapable of discussing anything from a boring angle and he manages to sprinkle topics such as modern parenting with surrealist fairy dust (take note, Mr Jupitus).

But by far the most popular turn of the evening came via Greg McHugh in his Gary: Tank Commander camp-soldier guise. Everything from the rant about cheesy pasta and his analysis of the war on terror’s roots was met with a frenzied adulation.

Seen on 07.03.14