Kevin Bridges @ SSE Hydro, Glasgow, 21 September
“I’m doing 16 dates here. I’m bigger than One Direction,” says Kevin Bridges, surveying the colossus that is the 13,000 capacity SSE Hydro from the safety of the stage.
In Glasgow, that statement might just be true. Bridges is the modern day patron saint of the city. When he’s not doing an absurdly long run at an astronomically large venue, he’s the subject of Glaswegian Friday night folklore – stories that usually end with Bridges being described as ‘down to earth’, ‘hilarious, even off the clock’ or ‘incredibly generous’.
Bridges – ably assisted by a trio of ‘big screen Bridges’ – does his reputation no harm with A Whole Different Story. On the day that ‘Piggate’ takes over the internet, he briefly riffs about the progressive friendship David Cameron and Kermit The Frog might have, before moving back into familiar, observational territory.
He’s not rewriting the rulebook, but in full flight Bridges is electric; picking apart the myth that a wild party ends at 6am, mocking perpetually unsatisfied nutritionists, and harking back to the nightmare of a bad childhood sleepover party. Best of all is a running gag that centres on Mexican painter Diego Rivera, a set-up that playfully suggests Bridges might be intellectually intimidated by West End kids called Sebastian.
Bridges is a natural entertainer and a marvellous storyteller, meticulous and sharp. What's more, he succeeds in making an arena gig intimate, a characteristic of a gifted stand-up. Comparisons to the Big Yin Billy Connolly aren’t wide of the mark.
Kevin Bridges: A Whole Different Story plays SSE Hydro, Glasgow until 26 Sep, 1-5 Oct, 10-11 Nov and 16-18 Nov, 8pm, £30
Also at Edinburgh Playhouse, 14-18 October, 8pm, £26