Capacity: About 60 out of 120. Respectable for a Tuesday night.
The theme: BOOBS 2008, as Deering explains, became the title of his show because it is something you can write on an upside-down calculator. It also gave him an excuse to cover Edinburgh with slightly frightening posters of his face superimposed above a pair of breasts. The inclusion of a few desultory remarks about breasts and feminism, among his usual mix of songs and one-liners, is purely coincidental.
High point: Musically, Deering is still a wonder. Not because he sounds so sweet (he doesn't), but because of his technical accomplishment in sampling his own voice, drums and guitar, live on stage, to create the sound of an entire band playing together. He also, unlike many musical comedians, knows how and when to stop a song: that is suddenly, and after the best joke. He can be very funny without music too, both physically and verbally. "No seriously, I am a feminist, just a lusty, ogling feminist," he comments at one point. "I'm a lesbian, in fact."
Weak spot: There were some early-Fringe glitches last night. And the feeling persists that Deering's material might be just a few shades too bawdy – not for my tastes, I should say, but for his own good. Wanking routines and faux-faux-misogyny are all very well when they come from brash, dangerous performers such as Jim Jeffries or Brendon Burns. But Deering is too nice a lad to get away with it, and his lapses of confidence – over the success of certain jokes or the number of people in the room – make him too vulnerable for comfort. Either way, do not, please, like the family behind me, take your nine-year-old daughter along to see him unless you want to spend the ride home explaining masturbation, paedophilia and Josef Fritzl.
Audience participation: Not enough for Deering's taste, until he pulls poor Marlene out of the crowd to join him on stage. At least her husband enjoyed it.
Comic equation: Bill Bailey + Jimmy Carr recurring
Mark out of 10: 6
Put this on your poster: No breasts were harmed during the making of this show.
