People either desperately need to laugh at the moment or there are lots of funny comedians around. The answer is probably both. Big cheers before a gag is even cracked at gigs is currently the norm. Jack Skipper may not have much TV profile but thanks to his TikTok fame the South London comic was welcomed like a homecoming hero at his biggest headlining gig yet.
It was quickly obvious why Skipper has been able to lure his online following away from their smartphones for an evening. His style is instantly accessible, utterly unpretentious and totally relatable. If you are looking for a much younger Micky Flanagan or a slightly more youthful Rob Beckett you can call off the search.
The former carpet fitter sets out his stall from the kick-off. He's an engaging thirtysomething geezer feeling his age and slightly bamboozled by life. He has had to cut back on his drinking and can't even eat cheese in the evenings any more. He loves his kids but hates them waking him up before dawn and plans to do the same to them when they are dozy teens.
His debut set, entitled Skint, is part observational stand-up, part origin story. Success has been speedy. He booked his first gig in March 2020 and when Covid scuppered it his mates suggested he put his gags online. His quickfire quips about masculinity and modern parenting touched a nerve.
Onstage the laughs flow too, with winning routines about manscaping mishaps and stag do pranks. Neat act-outs add visual punchlines to his verbal pay-offs. One highlight finds him recreating club scenes and the desperate dances of the peacocking male. Those days are long gone for him, he admits. The most attractive things he sees on nights out are the chairs.
Occasionally he is too unreconstructed for comic effect, getting mock nostalgic for the days when ADHD meant, as he puts it, punching a teacher rather than not finishing a book. But he certainly isn't someone who thinks that the past, a world of tatty caravan holidays and processed pink ham slices with everything, was a better place.
This is very much classic stand-up. Old school minus the sexism and racism. Skipper says this show, which earnt him a Best Newcomer nomination at the Edinburgh Fringe last summer, is all about laughing rather than learning. He jokes that you will leave as thick as when you arrived. True, but you'll definitely leave with a big grin on your face.
Also tonight, May 22 & September 24. Tickets & Information here: https://www.leicestersquaretheatre.com/show/jack-skipper-skint/
