I could tell you that we were looking to try out a new comedy venue and that’s why we ended up down a back street in Islington on a cold Monday night. I could tell you that, but I would be lying. We were there to see Mae Martin, that’s it, pure and simple… discovering another cool quirky festival style venue in North London was just a huge bonus.

The Bill Murray Pub is not actually  named after ‘that’ Bill Murray (a mistake we already made on Twitter) but according to a notice on the wall he is welcome anytime. It’s a classic residential corner pub that has been lovingly converted into a neat bar (that doesn’t actually have enough room for all patrons if a show sells out!) and a well styled comedy space that crams you in like the old Underbelly venues whilst at the same time managing to build positive anticipation for the show to come.

It was a Monday night and in some venues that might have meant a smaller or less responsive crowd… but not at The Bill Murray. Our clown for the evening walked on to the buzz of people ready to laugh and Mae did not disappoint.

This was a work-in-progress hour so its not fair to review the material but there is definitely a skill to being able to balance old material that clicks with new material that will –with tweaks– whilst also maintaining your natural casual edge that keeps the audience firmly on your side.

Mae has been moving in different circles these last few years, slots on Radio 4, successful book launches and now a TV series with Lisa Kudrow speak to her success – and we here at Clownster wish her all of it and much much more.

But in a selfish way we’ve missed Mae Martin’s stand up this year, and we’ve missed Wendy… It’s not often that you can say you’ve missed another persons mum without risking at least a slap but it was a delight to check back in with the Goddess club.

This show, when finished, will be well worth seeing. All of the pieces are there and the clown delivering it knows how to put them together. We’ll be lining up for tickets as soon as the opportunity arises and we recommend you do too.

Clown Stars: (-unrated-)

@Bill Murray Pub, London

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