Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

It is in the power of a storm that makes a Blizzard one of high tension and drama, the subtle falling of a snow that catches the lights and makes the gentle smile brighten up any face, can soon become a torrent, a fast flowing tornado of expression, a gale of the stuff that will keep you penned in your seats, absorbing every drop of nature that falls from above, and whilst it might catch you unawares, believing for a while that it will just be an inch or two to snip through with ease as you place your toes into the world of snowflakes and warm memories, instead the outpouring leaves you helpless, submerged, unable to do anything but admit that a Blizzard is a gamble worth enjoying.

A Sunday night out, the chance to take in the beauty and wipe out that a Blizzard can bring, to wrap up against the cold of indifference and take up arms in the fight to enjoy what used to be the dullest day of the week. For some it may be music, a film, catch up with family, or even burst the bubble of pompous rhetoric, all is a gamble after all, and for those who ventured out into the Liverpool night and took in one of the stars of television’s Mock The Week, Ed Gamble, and his take on subjects as diverse as dealing with diabetes, signing up and extoling the virtues of cute puppies for blind people, the risks of attending the Edinburgh Dungeon on your own and having a father who sometimes deals in the absolute certainty of his own words.

When you can share a screen with the likes of the superb Tiff Stevenson, Dara O’ Briain, Nish Kumar and Milton Jones, then a night out in Liverpool will seem as if you are prepared for the risks involved, a city that will embrace you if you are fearless, willing to stand up to the scrutiny of having the improbability of having three Barclays Bank employees and a convention of type one diabetics within earshot, and still manage to make a whole room laugh in unity at your observations.

Many comedians come to Liverpool with the knowledge that the audience will give as good as they receive, it is a fair exchange, survive it though and that Blizzard changes into rampant sunshine, blazing down on all with pleasure, and it is one that Ed Gamble playfully rolled over and chanced all upon, understanding that it would work terrifically.

A wonderful night of comedy, a natural in the realms of the Epstein Theatre.

Ian D. Hall