A quarter-life crisis

Edinburgh Fringe Festival

Russell Howard: Skylarking
Pleasance Courtyard

Skylarking, to play boisterously or actively, is an accurate description of one element of Russell Howard's show. But it doesn't really do it justice.

The West Country comic shows his ability to be incredibly funny off the cuff - one of several qualities he shares with Ross Noble - after spotting an easy target in the front row in his opening bit of banter.

Howard's main material, though, is about his epiphany after the first death of a family member - his dog. At the grand old age of 25, he questions where his life is going, why he is scared of things such as fighting and kids and why he still finds himself, now and then, unnecessarily excited. His solutions include sponsoring an African child and taking nan to the zoo.

The beauty of Howard's material is that it blends the observational with the ludicrous: from the copies of Bella at the doctor's surgery, with headlines such as My Womb Is Haunted, to the little girl on a train with her top pulled over her head gleefully screeching: 'Do you want to suck my blood?'

Until Aug 29 (no perf Aug 16), Pleasance Courtyard, 8.30pm, £8.50 to £9.50, £7 to £8 concs.