A sharp intake of breath for Ricky Gervais, the clown prince of wince

5 April 2012

The opening night of Ricky Gervais’s London run started with an apology. He recently injured his back playing golf and is on painkillers.

Apart from the fact that it serves him right for taking up the showbiz sport at his advanced age, this meant that occasionally he winced. Not as much as his audience though, whose laughs were mixed with intakes of breath as Gervais mocked gay men, fat people and Ken Dodd fans.

Yet unlike the bilious Frankie Boyle, the tastelessness here is so absurd one can see through it.

Gervais is clearly playing a character, making it hard to be offended for long. And, if there was any doubt, he cleared the air at the end with an intriguing, lightly philosophical thesis about shock humour being about confronting fears and how behaving rationally is hard in a post-9/11 world.

The strongest moment in this show, arbitrarily entitled Science, was the encore, when the mask of politically incorrect ignorance dropped.

In an anecdote about being scared of flying Gervais revealed how on one journey he was confronted by the ultimate English liberal’s nightmare — boarding alongside an Arabic passenger. His partner Jane reassured him, but he still fretted. "Have they checked his beard?"

This human story compensates for the easier laughs in the rest of the performance. Fat people might lose weight if cake departments had narrower doors, Noah was probably gay because he is wearing earrings in a children’s book. Ken Dodd’s gigs are so long his fans pack sandwiches.

There are some well-crafted surprises, however, and he is cruelly effective impersonating hunched, obsessive star-followers. "Even trainspotters look down on autograph hunters."
Science is not as acute as The Office or as cutting about celebrity culture as Extras.

But it is funnier than his new movie Cemetery Junction and more structured than Channel 4’s animated Ricky Gervais Show. Of course, if you want modesty look elsewhere. "For some Wembley is the pinnacle of their career. For me it’s a warm-up for Madison Square Garden."

Tonight and tomorrow. Information: 0844 815 0815, www.rickygervais.com

Ricky Gervais: Science
Wembley Arena
Arena Square, Engineers Way, HA9 0DH

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