Having heard the name and recognising the face of Rhod Gilbert, I was interested to see what he would be like live.
I say that like I have seen him on TV, but to be honest, I can’t think of one instance where I have. As the lights dimmed the crowd went wild and Gilbert came on stage with a nearly empty pint, wearing jeans and a non-descript purple t-shirt. His strong Welsh accent could have filled the Pleasance without the aid of a microphone.
The basic premise of the show was Gilbert opening the door on the events that had happened to him throughout the last year. I say he opened the door, it was barely even ajar before the rants began. His tone became nothing short of aggressive as he shouted and spat his way through his own foibles (Hoovers, duvets and panic buying, a story that despite its sad ending did manage to stir more than a few laughs from the audience.)
Gilbert seems to nothing more than a legend of this time, with a sell-out audience of clearly die hard fans, he had everyone captivated, even though his anger seemed to be directed at the most trivial of things.
If anything, I came out feeling much better about my OCD and slightly sorry for a man who seems to be wound up by the smallest of things. Don’t be put off by the title, something which is deftly described with two wonderful explanations, but if you are already a Gilbert fan, you will be in there like a shot. Just keep telling yourself, at least I’m ‘normal.’