Sam Eley is Basil Crumbwick @ Monkey Barrel Comedy

Sam Eley's Fringe debut introduces Basil Crumbwick: an angry, delusional old man adrift in the modern world, his enormous papier mâché head, bloodshot eyes and flared nostrils all acting as one big signifier of furious obsolescence.

This show could barely be more densely packed with jokes – the writing is excellent and Eley nails the nuance of the character. But this seems to be a marmite debut: while many of tonight's audience are evidently very entertained, a substantial portion seem solidly unmoved. As the title suggests, Basil is not a nice bloke, and perhaps this explains some of the impassive faces, but while Eley may occasionally exploit Basil's anti-woke views, it doesn't feel opportunistic. He hates everybody, he's xenophobic (which he argues should be seen as a form of neurodiversity), but he's transparently unhappy and lonely.

Basil complains vociferously about his neighbour, Beverly; "a rat" he calls her, but we realise she's motivated by concern. She's worried he's too cold (he's too mean to put on the heating) and he has a cunning plan to trap her in the act: "I’ve got a Malteser taped behind every radiator", he says triumphantly. Beverly's mentioned his screaming at night, likely a result of his voracious reading of the Goosebumps books, and he's angry about that too, but he bluffs it out. "I'm not screaming because I’m scared," Basil cries, "I’m screaming because I’m curious".

The disconnect from any real emotion make his attempts at a self-help book farcical: for starters, he's adamant there's no such thing as depression. Basil's one solution to mental distress is fantasy and a basic one at that – essentially the Playboy bunnies repeatedly losing their clothes. There's an odd kind of innocence or arrested development at work that's almost – almost, mind – touching.

Despite Basil's exhaustive efforts, the bin man doesn't want to be friends, and then Beverly moves away to live with her grandkids, but Eley resists even a hint of consolation or redemption in the ending. Basil may be a sad sad man, but this is a very funny show.

---

Sam Eley is Basil Crumbwick: Soul Sewage, Monkey Barrel Comedy (MB2), until 30 Aug (not 18), 11.25pm, £12.50; extra show at MB1, Mon 17 Aug, 7.25pm