Comedy review: Tom Walker: Bee Boo

Edinburgh Festival Fringe: You've got to admire a performer who keeps a running tally of his walkouts at various festivals, the aggression of his act that Tom Walker alludes to with a silly bit of business outside the venue before his show, swiftly confirmed by the violent manner in which he dispatches some of his props.

Underbelly, George Square (Venue 300)

***

But the Australian clown, for all his unblinking intensity is also, in his way, adorable. And I simply can’t fathom the audience members who don’t want to get on board with his call and response tomfoolery. True, he’s rangy and looms intimidatingly. But he’s also a big kid, albeit a mildly malevolent one.

Through mime, toys and whimsy, he seduces you into his little games with the depth of his own commitment. With surely the most outstanding pullback and reveal joke of the festival, the preparation and hardship its caused him for a solitary sight gag is related in a grumbling aside.

That routine notwithstanding, and despite a fairly consistent rate of laughs, I still don’t feel as if there are enough standout set-pieces to elevate Walker to the top tier of clowns plying their trade at the Fringe.

Until 27 August. Today 8pm.