Joe Kent-Walters @ Monkey Barrel

Winner of last year’s BBC New Comedy Award, Joe Kent-Walters is transcendent as Yorkshire rotter Frankie Monroe. All hunched shoulders and sudocrem-faced, the working men’s club owner (Rotherham’s The Misty Moon) has shades of all the surreal big comedy hitters of the 90s and 00s and feels both familiar and genuinely fresh in its presentation. 

We also glimpse several other characters – Brandy Moon, his Spencer Jones-esque small-mouthed nephew; Billy Wonga, a Johnny Cash impersonator with a knack for a catchy tune; and Mucky Pup, a puppet which takes on the voices of distinctive audience members – and Frankie's favourite accessory, a trowel. They’re equally as strange and fun as Monroe, but don’t quite have the same sticking power as our evening’s host.

Monroe’s teases of his audience are blissfully light on their participation (asking for facts about one audience member, making another win his phone back with a delightfully surprising Scampi Fry based game). And although he cuts an intimidating shape, his mission is never to make folk feel uncomfortable (unless you count the reveal of Mucky Pup, a genuinely nightmarish glove of felt, or growling his catchphrase ‘Good Boy’ at those he interacts with).

The titular character’s succumbing to hell does all feel a little unnecessary when the show already has plenty of framing in the club setting. It is, however, presented as a genuinely mesmerising bit of stage trickery which keeps you on your toes, especially in its late-night slot.

The whole thing fizzes with chaos, and although it’s a piece of alternative comedy through and through, its edges are a little smoother and more palatable compared to other characters or clowns elsewhere at the festival. Kent-Walters’ creation feels right at home at the Fringe, and we hope The Misty Moon escapes its fiery fate to live another festival.

---

Joe Kent-Walters is Frankie Monroe: LIVE!!!, Monkey Barrel, (MB2), until 25 Aug (not 14), 11.25pm, £7-12