Gearoid Farrelly: Turbulence

Though he seems a touch nervy at first and genuinely surprised that he has an audience that almost fills the Wee Room at the Gilded Balloon, Farrelly actually has nothing to be worried about. When he hits his stride the slight Irishman from a rough area of Dublin is a fine stand up and many of the lines in this, his Edinburgh debut, stand out as particularly acerbic, sharply delivered bon mots that frequently make a section of the audience guffaw with laughter. After a nicely pitched introductory film featuring his mum, the shows moves onto to tell of his life and its 'turbulence.' Gaining in confidence as he goes he tells of dying bunny rabbits, his not-nice Nan and Kinder Surprise turtles. The banter skills, which he claims not to have, turn out to be absolutely fine – in fact he engages us so much that he runs over slightly. With a little tightening up and greater consistency Farrelly has the potential to be a brilliant act.

Gilded Balloon, 622 6552, until 26 Aug (not 13), 8.15pm, ￡8.50-￡9.50 (￡7.50-￡8.50)