Oh, it’s all there! All the trademarks are in evidence in Ardal’s latest show. Beautifully crafted stand-up comedy? Yes. Celebrated use of language? Tick. Lateral thinking, surreal flourishes, sharp observations? Of course. As for the occasional profundity? Maybe.
Ardal is not only an acclaimed stand-up comedian who has performed worldwide. He will be familiar to many from his appearances in TV shows such as Taskmaster and Would I Lie To You?, leading roles in Death In Paradise, Father Ted, and My Hero as well as cameos in Derry Girls, The Woman In The Wall, Return To Paradise and Rosie Molloy Gives Up Everything. He will soon be seen in the new Netflix series, How To Get To Heaven From Belfast. His second novel A Plot to Die For? will be released in 2026.
Despite his best attempts over many decades to put the world to rights, it is still a colossal mess. And so, Ardal has no choice but to go out on the road again. Like the good comedy doctor he is, he fearlessly diagnoses the various pathologies and neuroses that are currently ravaging humanity. Disclaimer: No solutions provided.
After an alarming experience at the supermarket, Ardal reflects on who he is as a man and a comedian. He examines his own ethnic and religious background. And thinks twice about the very core of his identity as a voice of reason. Is everything a big lie? With no major trauma of his own to draw on for material, apart from the drag of getting older, he also turns his gaze outwards at the joys and follies of contemporary life. Towel Animals? A.I.? Chair Yoga? Cauliflower as a main course? Yes. Yes. Yes. And Yes. No current idiocy is left unexamined. With a highly developed sense of the ridiculous, and proper comedy bones, Not Himself is a testament to the healing power of humour. And the joy of jokes.
