Nish Kumar: Actions Speak Louder Than Words, Unless You Shout the Words Real Loud

Nish Kumar admits he has a problem. His career is stuck because he's unfortunately 'critically acclaimed' – meaning that he's loved by Guardian journalists but finds selling tickets for shows outside the Fringe tough. This acclaim comes from his self-acknowledged middle-class status, where his references include Miles Davis and gentrification. His set is imbued with anger at a Brexit Britain, and he recounts experiencing unabashed racism the day after the EU referendum result. He draws on his history degree to critique the British refusal to confront its own horrendous imperial past. Given this cocktail of incendiary topics and a desire to use humour to engage with real-world probems, how come all of this comes across as just a bit too nice?

Kumar acknowledges at one point that he's a technically accomplished comedian. And he's right – these are really well-crafted jokes that work the crowd efficiently, showing his skill in delivery. But this means the anger seems more a tool enabling the humour to function than a genuinely oppositional stance. He finds much to critique in Britain's flawed engagement with race, summed up in a smart gag about the Spice Girls. So it's a shame that the comic skill and political intelligence on display here aren't more energetically fused, using humour to destabilise the audience's preconceptions. It feels like he's on the verge of unashamedly arguing for his politics, but is concerned it will get in the way of the jokes. He should be encouraged to take that step.