Review: Bill Bailey - Thoughtifier at the O2

Bill's back! Fresh from winning some dance show on linear-TV and ready to... well, do the same thing as he's been doing for years. Rambling tales, dozens of instruments, innovative tech, and a charming whimsy - undercut with, perhaps, a little more darkness than usual.

It is a classic, if unsurprising gig. There's an odd segue into Pachelbel's Canon - material which has been mined to extinction by a dozen other musical comedians - but Bill manages to find something new in it. Just about. The rest of the jokes and skits are up to his usual daft standards.

The nice thing about a Bill Bailey gig is that it is exactly what you expect. Some comedians have a very different stage presence compared to their 15 minutes on a panel show. But Bill has been Bill for long enough that he knows how to give the audience an excellent mix of what he does best.

The O2 is, perhaps, too cavernous a venue for stand-up comedy. Even up in the (very) cheap seats, we had an excellent view - albeit of the projection screens. The sound engineering is excellent - words and music were loud and clear. But you do lose something when you can't really see the person on stage. Similarly, the audience interaction is limited to the front row - and anyone who can shout loudly enough to cross the chasm.

Highly recommended for fans of lasers, opera, intricate jokes, a little bit of politics (ladies and gentlemen), and musical pastiches.

You can get tickets for the tour as it travels through the UK and Europe.