In a month's time, the Perrier Award (still the biggest and the best in the business) will be announced at the Edinburgh Fringe. The Irish have always done indecently well in the bottled water stakes, and per head of population we're probably the most successful country when it comes to winning the prize. an Hughes (1990), Dylan Moran (1996) and Tommy Tiernan (1998), with nominees being Owen O'Neill, Graham Norton and Ed Byrne.
This year's local hopefuls gathered together to put on previews of their Edinburgh show at the Laughter Lounge last week and gave us all a chance to compare and contrast their chances with those of years past. Ignoring the fact that in all likelihood The Mighty Boosh will win this year's Perrier, there were a few delights on display.
First on was Brendan Burke, whose show is called One Night In Baghdad. Loosely based around his experiences working in Iraq, Burke proved to be a real crowd-pleaser. Obviously going for the thematic angle (a real plus in Edinburgh), his show is largely confessional/autobiographical, complete with comedic setpieces.
Dara O'Briain followed with some terrific new material (tornadoes in the US, the underlying themes of Irish poets - yes, nothing if not varied), but he is still rattling out his material like he was The Ramones trying to do 35 songs in the space of an hour. He introduced some light and shade into this material (courtesy of a routine about a relationship breaking down), but could have mined this a bit more.
Paddy Courtney brought his hi-energy routines to bear on the proceedings. In between all the clever stuff about the Irish abroad, there were peeks at a real transgressive voice (very seldom, if ever, heard in Irish comedy), again something he may want to build on.
Closing the show was the curious spectacle of an Irish-American hip-hop comedy act. Des Bishop comes straight outta the 'hood, with a very fresh take on how to conflate stand-up with gangsta rap rhythms.
The two other Irish shows destined for the Fringe, David O'Doherty's The Boy Who Saved Comedy (a real contender this year) and Joe Rooney and Patrick McDonnell's The Pound Shop Boys, will be reviewed later.
