COMEDIAN and actor Joel Dommett is touring his Live 2018 show, playing York in a Sunday gig rearranged from last November.

Having first appeared on the stand-up comedy scene in 2007, Gloucestershire-born Dommett has enjoyed a rapid and very varied elevation to stardom, including success at the Edinburgh Fringe, film and television roles, hosting commentary shows, and even taking second place in the 16th series of I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here!.

Stepping out before a venue packed with eager fans, Dommett’s goofy, immature everyman persona received something of a mixed reception. Early jokes centred around the fame of his genitals and swastikas, and with the audience not laughing enough, it felt quite forced. However, as Dommett continued, the quality of his material began to show itself at little more, and some excellent back-and-forths with several members of the audience revealed a talent for spontaneous wit.

Ultimately, however, the first half was marred by a meandering lack of focus, as Dommett could not resist relaying any anecdote or witticism without reflexively commenting on his own performance or indulging an irrelevant segue into reminiscence. The overall effect was distracting and detrimental to his efforts, or so it seemed until the beginning of the second half.

Kicking things off with a moody break-up ballad that quickly turned into a groin-based laser light show, the tone of the evening shifted abruptly. What had seemed like a lack of direction in the first half suddenly proved to be a deliberate ploy by Dommett in order to set up a series of rapid-fire callbacks and punchlines, all of which found their mark.

A greater reliance on prop-comedy, including a confetti cannon that Dommett justifiably refers to as "the best £100 I ever spent", and a more relatable, much more enthusiastic style really raised the bar, culminating in a hilariously terrible reunion performance of his childhood band.

Slow to start but almost unstoppable by the finish, Joel Dommett has a surprisingly satirical take on the absurdities of modern fame.