The Edinburgh Festival seems a world away, but it was transplanted to London with a vengeance last night for the first of three if.comedy Awards showcases.
The Perrier Award might be down the plughole, but with great gigs like these, new sponsors Intelligent Finance can laugh all the way to the bank.
First was Andrew Lawrence, equal parts Charlie Drake and Johnny Rotten. His dark monologue was a masterclass in hardcore misanthropy, explaining how to lose friends and alienate people, pouring scorn on everyone from "web-fingered" toffs to scroungers with "bits of scratchcard between their teeth". Repulsive yet compulsive.
But this was if.comedy winner Brendon Burns's night. After 16 years at stand-up's coalface the aggressive Aussie has struck gold with this playful, thought-provoking set. It is a ferocious no-holds-barred rant that goes to familiar places and puts a dramatic new spin on them.
The theme is the nature of feeling, with Burns delivering tart gags about reality TV, terrorism, race, religion and political correctness in a bark that would make lesser mortals hoarse in minutes. Not just a loud hour, also a must-see one, revealing that comedy, like life, is never black and white.
Brendon Burns and Andrew Lawrence
Garrick Theatre
