Nick Wilty
Taking the 'man in the pub' approach, Wilty talks in gravely tones about his career in the army, his naivety and the struggles of the war, often relying on 'barracks' type humour.
Nick Wilty is a veteran in more ways than one, an old hand on the stand-up circuit he returns to the Fringe festival with an army-related, personal show, Incident Prone. It's the 25th anniversary of the Falklands war and Wilty isn't the only soldier who's struggled to come to terms with events that took place there, but not many stand on stage and talk honestly about their feelings in an engaging and humorous style. Wilty looks incredibly uncomfortable in his 'civy' clothes despite being out of the army for many years, and his velour snake skin patterned jacket looks as old as his stand-up style. Taking the 'man in the pub' approach, Wilty talks in gravely tones about his career in the army, his naivety and the struggles of the war, often relying on 'barracks' type humour. In much needed asides he explains various terms such as 'blue on blue': "there was no friendly fire then, there were no Americans, we had to do it ourselves in those days," and illustrates his stories with documentary footage and photographs. In terms of jokes it's a slow start, Wilty is more interesting than funny and when the punchlines do start to flow they seem at odds with the serious tone. He seems painfully aware of this, exclaiming "no punchline" at the end to one story which ironically gets a laugh. Wilty finishes the hour by describing the cathartic release of returning to the islands earlier this year, which features highs and lows both narratively and comically. Witly has an interesting perspective but perhaps a comedy club isn't the best venue for it. [Emma Lennox]
Nick Wilty, Incident Prone, The Stand II, Until 26 Aug, 21:00, £8 (£7)