Josh Jones promised an evening of 'just jokes' with no thinking required during his recent performance at The Stand in Glasgow. However, the reality of the show fell short of this simple premise, leaving the audience with a meandering and ultimately insubstantial set.
A Likeable Performer, A Flimsy Show
The 32-year-old Mancunian, a former contestant on Dancing On Ice, proved himself to be a camp and ebullient stage presence. His personality is undeniably hard to dislike, but as the Guardian critic noted, that charm alone couldn't compensate for the lack of a well-crafted performance. By the end of the under-hour runtime, even Jones seemed aware the gig hadn't gone well, accusing the Glasgow crowd of being 'tepid'. In truth, the audience deserved credit for their patience with such slim comedic pickings.
Meandering Through Life Without Punchlines
The show lacked a clear structure, instead drifting through anecdotes from Jones's life. He touched on his family, his reality TV stint, and his social move from a Manchester suburb to the edges of affluent Cheshire. While a routine about the clash between his tactile boyfriend and his non-hugging father landed well, and a late gag about 'bumming' showed sharp contrast, these highlights were few and far between.
Too often, the material consisted of vaguely amusing personal stories, like being propositioned in Cancún, presented as jokes without a satisfying punchline. A much-hyped 'nonce' joke failed to deliver any transgressive payoff, amounting to little more than a setup. A digression into the slave trade, which incorrectly absolved Glasgow of colonial history, was both poorly judged and underwhelming in its execution.
A Call for More Substantial Craft
Ultimately, this was a vanishingly insubstantial set that highlighted a need for greater comedic craft and more developed material. The absence of thoughtful content might be forgiven if the jokes consistently hit their mark, but on this night in Glasgow, they largely did not. Josh Jones's next performance is scheduled for Monkey Barrel Edinburgh on 4 December, with his tour continuing until April.
