Ian Waller reviews this rising star of comedy, fresh from his appearance on Have I Got News For you
Ed Patrick, NHS anaesthetist, author and stand-up, was the latest rising star of comedy to play to a sold-out audience at the Rondo Theatre in Bath. Of course, you can now add ‘Have I Got News For You panellist’ to this list, with Ed recently joining Ian Hislop’s team for some peak-time politician bashing.
Ed’s current tour, Catch Your Breath, delivers an excellent hour of comedy, medical observations and mishaps, and a few corny one-liners dropped in for good measure. “Rishi Sunak would love this,” said Ed, early on the in the evening. “150 paying to see a doctor.” And with that, the spirit of the evening was set.
Covering subjects as widely varied at anaesthetist exams, marrying a midwife, genital examinations – which had one row in particular in absolute fits of deserved laugher – and even signing his own death certificate, Ed combines engaging story telling with a thoroughly likeable character and the sort of enthusiasm that comes with youth.
Just one word of warning with regards to where you sit at future shows. Poor Adam in the front row, already the target of support act, then became the subject of the main act’s focus, although to Adam’s credit, he dealt with it heroically.
And of course, as any commentary on the condition of today’s NHS demands, there’s a fair bit of justifiable government bashing along the way.
OK, the delivery at times was a little awkward and stilted, and perhaps the general stagecraft is still to be fully honed, but these are early days from the man from the NHS, and as his act matures, you can see him reaching that heights that he deserves.
For more information on upcoming gigs at The Rondo, go to rondotheatre.co.uk/