Liam Mullone: In A Dead Man's Hat

Liam Mallone looks, sounds, and walks like a man with a pretty downbeat past. No surprise for someone who has written obituaries for The Times, dug graves and has now reached the dizzy heights of—as he describes his new place in the world—“a second-tier comedian.” Then again, it’s not necessarily something to laugh about.

Which is lucky, because Mullone tells us from the start that this show isn’t stand-up (though I’m not sure anyone told his promoters) and that it’s all true. Going by the content, I really hope he’s lying.

The basis of Mullone’s show is the story of being stranded in the middle of the Nevada desert with a van, some pork chops and a violent imaginary friend. Exactly the kind of golden material most comics dream of dreaming-up. But as he says, this all happened.

This potentially hilarious set-up is interspersed with, and to a large extent overshadowed by, more real life reminisces of early parts of his life that are, by and large, bloody depressing.

But this depression is never that successfully turned into laughs and many of his anecdotes hold little amusement for anyone without a heart of stone. Overdone and superfluous lighting changes mark the many shifts from desert plight to less specific misfortune throughout the show. On top of this, Mullone seems unable to deliver a line without slightly losing his train of thought or touching his eighties indie boy hair.

Mullone’s experiences hold a great deal of potential for both stand-up and more straightforwardly enlightening performances. It’s just a shame this show doesn’t fulfill it.