Stephen Carlin: Guilty Bystander

• Peggy Hughes
• 16 August 2011

This article is from 2011.

Unsettlingly funny with flashes of greatness

Performing in front of a photofit of his own Yorkshire Ripperish face, Stephen ‘not obsessed with snooker’ Carlin’s Guilty Bystander is unsettlingly funny. Best when he’s being bitter – railing against cheating women or family Christmases – or riffing on the criminal confessions he elicits from the audience, Carlin can seem slightly awkward and sometimes lacks polish, but he isn’t without flashes of greatness.

The Stand III & IV, 558 7272, until 28 Aug, 9.25pm, £8 (£7).