Words: Elodie Marriott
Image: Lewis Coleman

4 stars

Harry Stachini: supporter of women’s (even biblical mothers) right to choose, lethal fighter (as long as they’re under the age of 12), and bomb expert (favours setting them off over diffusing them).

Stachini begins with some friendly banter, interrogating couples in the crowd. A key theme of his set is dysfunctional relationships, so he quizzes them mischievously, likely hoping for a public fight. He loves those. Stachini also loves shocking his audience. Whether it’s a blasphemous imagining of the (pregnant) Virgin Mary clubbing in Manchester or a graphic description of a doctor’s appointment (grimly nicknamed: Bum Tucker Trial), Stachini often leaves the crowd wide-eyed and nervously chuckling.

He plays the devil’s advocate, or maybe just the devil, recalling his time spent teaching in a school for excessively naughty children. His anecdotes are funny as they’re outrageous and wildly unprofessional, making you glad for two reasons that he chose to pursue comedy instead. Standup is a much better fit for Stachini, as it’s funnier when you threaten to eat a ten-year-old if you’re doing it in a comedy club rather than a school.

Grenade is a comically tight show, set around a valuable message: lying gets you weekends at Dunelm. But also, that honesty takes courage and is worth doing. At worst, you’ll get enough material for a standup show.

Harry Stachini: Grenade
Underbelly Bristo Square- Dexter,
17:45
Aug 16-26