one4review | On 27, Aug 2023

Step away from the plethora of comedy at the Edinburgh Festival and there is still plenty going on outwith the city. Gary Meikle quite rightly gave the capital crowds a swerve and brought the first of his No Refunds show to Bathgate’s Regal Theatre last week ahead of starting his UK and Ireland tour which runs until the end of November.

From the moment Gary comes out on the stage it’s clear he has the sold-out audience in the palm of his hand. Many if not all are familiar with his viral social media videos often documenting life with his daughter, Ainslie, and grandparenting wee Gracie. Gary draws inspiration for many of his anecdotes from his experiences with these two lucky ladies in his life. His show at this stage is very much a work in progress and Gary has notes to hand, documenting what draws the laughs and what falls short. Spoiler – there’s not much that falls short at all!

Topics up for discussion include his self-diagnosed ADHD, dating, over familiar fans, and his appreciation for a certain part of the female body – and it’s not eyebrows! His comedy is very much relatable and drawn on observations from day-to-day life – the crowd were there for laughs and Gary did not disappoint at all.

Gary Meikle is on the up – I’d highly recommend seeing his show if you can.

By the time he irons out the rougher edges from early dates and can distract himself from half cut hecklers I’ve no doubt he will be delivering a highly polished performance to town near you very soon!

****
Reviewed by Lyndsey
Bathgate Regal Theatre
UK and Ireland Tour starts September 2023