Dave Gorman‘s latest show, With Great PowerPoint Comes Great ResponsibilityPoint, highlighted the trajectory of his approach to comedy – or, in other words, was perhaps the most Dave Gorman-esque show he’s ever done. A logical conclusion following his many tours, radio and TV series, and especially his (now sadly ended) Dave series Modern Life is Goodish, it saw Gorman on fine form, with his usual tricks and tics in tow.
Nick Doody, a long-time Gorman acolyte and well-established stand-up, provided able support, delivering clever gags and witty satire mixed with some knowingly silly songs, including a paean to Batman which summed up what was an enjoyable set.
What’s most surprising about Dave Gorman’s act is that even with a well-worn format, he’s still capable of surprising audiences with it. That was certainly true here, and in among the usual hallmarks of a Gorman show – not least the titular presentation program – this time around he was using it to detail his family’s move to Bournemouth and also to turn his attention to the media, especially the dishonesty of tabloid news media and the fakery and hypocrisy of TV shows, with The Chase and Cash in the Attic coming under particular scrutiny. Of course, he tackled this in the only way he knows how – through prodigious use of slides, video clips, data and graphs. Although that comprised the bulk of the show, he still found room for the most inspired giraffe joke this reviewer has ever witnessed.
The PowerPoint-led format has become so proliferated in both comedy and in other spheres of performance, not least the now-ubiquitous TED talk, that it’s far from Gorman’s own, but despite that he’s successfully curated a niche in this area which is clearly still lapped up by an eager fanbase, from his presentation-informed stand-up to the found poems – a regular device spun from the more bizarre corners of the internet’s many comment sections – he used to close out the show. And more importantly, it’s a niche which – on this evidence – has still got plenty of scope for him to create comedy which is warm, intelligent and a real joy.
Who's Laughing Now? 