Review: Sitting Room Comedy a hit with Miss Osho

Review: Sitting Room Comedy
Venue: Monkbar Hotel, July 18

I was delighted to find that the air conditioning was on full blast at the Monkbar Hotel for Sitting Room Comedy’s latest event, after another day of heatwave! Sitting Room Comedy is fast becoming a go-to for excellent midweek comedy in York with a very strong line-up for July. 

Compere Fern Brady hit the stage to welcome us in, dropping a few bits of new material in alongside some of her best tried and trusted stuff, warming up a slightly hesitant crowd nicely – although I think she scared a few of the more mature members of the audience.
Gavin Webster is a Newcastle based comedian, who made his debut (according to Wikipedia) on the same show as Ross Noble in the early Nineties. 
He told us right off the bat that he was working on new material for his show Don’t Give Money to Comic Relief, and other opinions.
It seemed to me as though a lot of this new material might not make it to his final Edinburgh show. It wasn’t that the material is not funny, just that he didn’t really connect with this audience, and some of it felt very dated and a bit… blah? 
Surely he isn’t the first person to point out that Bob Geldof has loads of money. Webster is a funny man, but on this occasion it seemed his slightly manic stage persona alienated more than it charmed.
After a much needed break, and a lovely cold drink, Fern took to the stage again to introduce star of Channel 4’s Stand Up For The Week Andi Osho.
Whether it was planned or not, Osho’s opening relaxed a crowd who were still a little dazed by the heat and first half, declaring as she did ‘S*** I’m not ready’ as she took the stage. I have seen Osho on the TV quite a few times and always found her topical material to be charming but never quite connecting with me, not sure why, but on a hot July night I was utterly won over. 
From some relaxed banter with the crowd to some very near the knuckle new material, Osho worked the room brilliantly. It was a genuine treat to see her in such an intimate setting before the inevitable big venue tour and DVD release.
A much more hit than miss night for Sitting Room Comedy and I look forward to the next one.