Lost Voice Guy

Cerebral palsy took Lee Ridley's voice as a child. And now he wants it back.

That may sound like a hyperbolic movie strap-line, but that is exactly how Ridley pitches his show. He has been mute since a child, but doing standup comedy has given him a voice.

To be precise, his iPad provides the vocal talent. His show is delivered via an impressive bit of software, in a voice that he describes as “like a posh version of Robocop”. Its warmth and intonation makes Steven Hawking sound like a ZX Spectrum.

His hour has a gentle feel about it. Probably too much so. The sections when he talks about his love for his family are admirable and justified, but it saps the momentum.

The pacing is unbalanced too. Ridley expends his best material early. Strong jokes about the Paralympics and speaking through a computer give way to tales about overcoming the odds and achieving independence. But when this is only backed up with obvious gags about Hitler and porn, the inspirational message makes the comedy seem even more trite by comparison.

He is at his best when ballsy and unapologetic, when he's not cowed by his condition. There is a decent half-hour of material giving cerebral palsy the runaround and skewering our prejudices and expectations. The other 30 minutes feels like filler from another show. More of the action movie dynamism and Ridley's voice could be one to listen out for.