The Grand Theatre, Swansea
Mon 15 Oct,
words: ANGHARAD BROWN
★★★★★
Since his last tour, Greg Davies has firmly established himself as a household name through his countless appearances on television, his role in the Inbetweeners and more recently through the BBC Three series Cuckoo. Therefore, it’s no surprise that his latest tour The Back of My Mum’s Head is pretty much a sell-out for all of his dates.
Despite a late start due to Davies apparently arriving late to the venue, this did nothing but cause more anticipation for the evening’s entertainment. I was surprised by the average age of the audience being over 30, a big difference to when I’ve seen him on stage before. This is something the support act Ed Gamble perhaps slightly struggled with, as his cock and ball jokes didn’t go down as well as they might’ve done with a younger crowd. However, his quick wittedness and ability to cope with a kamikaze fly that was determined to interrupt his routine impressed me, and I’m keen to see him live again.
After a brief interval, on strolled Greg Davies – joined on stage by his trusty flip-board, a prop that the audience would’ve also seen in his previous tour. Davies described how the show would be divided in several sections, all signs that reminded us of his former teaching profession. The new show covers similar topics to that of his previous tour, for example his family and mother in particular feature heavily and the material revolves around events in his past.
Starting with a brief moment of audience interaction and finishing with a song that involved the return of Ed Gamble in a compromising costume, Davies was absolutely hilarious throughout. He was attacked by the same fly that bothered Gamble in the first half and it led to some hilarious improvisation which, alongside the quotations section of the night, was probably the part of the shows I enjoyed the most. It proved that yes, he has obviously practiced his new material and knows it inside out, but he’s also an extremely clever and witty man without the safety blanket of a rehearsed performance – something I’d seen other comedians struggle with on numerous occasions.
