Review: Chris Ramsey, George Zach, Martin Mor & John Smith – The Barnes, Sunderland

Chris Ramsey

This past weekend The Grinning Idiot Comedy Club played host to Comedy Rocks’ Chris Ramsey, North East based act George Zach, Martin Mor and resident compere John Smith at The Barnes in Sunderland. It’s a lovely venue for comedy and it’s set up perfectly, but the room really suits a smaller audience – and with Saturday’s show sold out there was always potential for the punters to take central stage.

MC John Smith had a friendly rapport with the crowd, and managed to maintain control of the evening despite impolite chatter from the comedy illiterate punters. Smith doesn’t have much in the way of jokes – the ones he did attempt were generally poorly received – but he’s certainly at ease with the stage.

Like Smith, opener Martin Mor knew how to handle a weekend crowd like this, with some nicely prepared putdowns and a lively on stage character. However, save for his excellent Ireland-centric routines, there was little in the way of original material and his punch lines, for me, felt too predictable at times.

Occupying the middle spot of the evening, George Zach went down well with the crowd and got some of the bigger laughs of the night. Zach’s fifteen felt stretched at times – mainly near the end of his set – but he’s got more than enough good material in here for a solid ten. His opening ‘Geordie translation’ routine was a particular highlight for this reviewer, and though it could be argued that Zach occasionally goes for the easier laughs, he’s a really likeable act who could go far.

A clear highlight of the evening, headliner Chris Ramsey turned any negative energy left in the room into playful banter with a commanding narrative. Ramsey’s been reviewed several times for Giggle Beats so I won’t detail his act too much, but he has such a high laughter rate that he’s always a joy to watch. His newer material about his local supermarket went down well and slotted seamlessly into his set, though his shoplifting routine that followed could probably be a little tighter.

But in truth Ramsey’s just naturally funny – that’s probably why his narrative style works so well for him – and to pay £10 a ticket for one of the best young headliners in the country (and another two acts) is truly excellent value for money.

The Grinning Idiot Comedy Club’s next show at The Barnes is on Friday 13^th May, with Seymour Mace headlining. For further information see the Giggle Beats calendar or visit The Grinning Idiot’s website here.