Stand Up Comedy

For me, Ben Elton was the epitome of the new breed of stand up comedian who emerged in the 80s. Edgy political rants on shows like Friday Night Live - always having a go at “Mrs Thatch” - were followed by some great writing of shows like “Blackadder”. But I never saw him perform live at the time.
Fast forward forty odd years, and we’re all a bit older and - possibly - mellower. And rather than performing only in the comedy clubs, Mr Elton is now touring the country, including - of all places - Kendal Leisure Centre!
But if I thought there wouldn’t be any ranting, I was very much mistaken. Rather than politics though, we were treated to a hilarious couple of hours as he railed against all those things that annoy us 60 somethings. Particularly the younger Millennial and Gen Z generations! A lot of what he said was quite edgy - who would have thought you could get people laughing hysterically at the subject of assisted dying - but delivered in such a way that you didn’t feel offended. Though you had a niggling feeling that you perhaps ought to be.
It would appear that a few people were not keen on the material though, as there were a few gaps in the audience after the interval. Make you wonder what they were expecting - a rehash of 80s jokes perhaps?
All in all a very amusing evening and all delivered in his inimitable style. I was glad to see that he is as edgy and controversial at age 65 as he was at age 25. An attitude I heartily agree with!