Some comedians take a while to hit their stride. Not Nish Kumar. Within minutes of walking onstage he had taken issue with Donald Trump and Elon Musk, denounced the rise of white supremacy, questioned why we have a monarchy and condemned the actions of Benjamin Netanyahu. And then he finally found the time to breathe.
It was an intense warm up for Nish, Don’t Kill My Vibe. But by his own admission the splenetic satirist has had much to be angry about in recent years. He wasn’t even able to take pleasure in seeing a fellow person of colour as Prime Minister, joking that the only thing he and Rishi Sunak had in common was that they were both British Asians promoted way above their abilities.
This was a strangely genial type of rage though, as he worked through a tick list of topical gripes, occasionally stopping to smile and point out that this is not a Pub Landlord-style comedy character, this is what he is like offstage too. He might be fuming but he never forgets to add punchlines to his polemics.
He was at his best when the righteous anger was garnished with absurdity. His anti-monarchist stance received a huge cheer from his sympathetic fanbase when he suggested that the royal family is an anachronism in this hi-tech age: “You can’t have electric cars and a king.”
When discussing America, where he has just been touring and can’t quite believe they let him in – or out – he joked that if Homeland Security was in the audience his name was Romesh Ranganathan. Though actually the curly-mopped comic is such a dead ringer for current Taskmaster contestant Jason Mantzoukas I wonder if they’ve ever been seen in a room together.
There was personal material here too, with anecdotes about anxiety, losing his passport and breaking his finger by sitting on it during a football match. Kumar is happy to set himself up as the fall guy. He once spotted Boris Johnson during a TV shoot and ended up chasing him and swearing at him. It didn't make the cut.
This set was being filmed for release and at times it did feel a little over-written. Some of the funniest moments were when he went off-script, such as when he was heckled for mocking his friend, Off Menu podcast star James Acaster, and had to pause to emphasise that some things were said for humorous effect.
But most things were said because he needs to address what is happening in the world. This was fulminating stand-up at its most full-on. Kumar concluded by wondering if maybe he should cut back on the politics and just write jokes about fridges. I'm not sure if he could ever do that. But it would certainly be better for his blood pressure.
Touring. Tickets and information at nishkumar.co.uk.
