Kai Humphries - Evolution

Kai Humphries will most likely resent this, but Cheryl Cole has definitely reformed the way in which Geordie accents are received by the public – the Telegraph recently published an article claiming “The Geordie accent has been voted the sexiest in the UK thanks to celebrities such as Cheryl Cole”! There is something instantly endearing about the copious replacement of consonants with glottal stops, and my affinity for Humphries and his Geordie accent was something really quite irrational. 

This is Humphries' Fringe debut, and a confident first step. Evolution takes the relatively well-trodden ground of coming of age, girlfriend/boyfriend dramas, and racial anecdotes, and makes it Humphries' own. Chatty and easy-going, Humphries is impossible to dislike. The material is definitely witty, and there are moments which are side-splittingly funny. Yet, what the potential to be a solid performance, is let down by an over-rehearsed and slightly inhibited delivery, as Humphries struggles to pitch punch lines properly, forces in a few quips which don’t entirely gel, and often stumbles too quickly from one topic to the next. 

But this is nothing Humphries can't fix. With a few more shows, another tour or two and a little buzz, Humphries could have a great act to boot. He would also be well-advised to catch some Gok Wan on TV now and then; in the words of our favourite dandy: "It's all about confidence."