Ursine Canadian émigré Craig Campbell is one of those natural raconteurs who can instinctively entertain and amuse, no matter what yarn they’re spinning. Such ingrained skill ensures a set that’s guaranteed to have you chuckling – even if you might later struggle to remember what it was that was so damn funny. The answer is Campbell himself.

He plays up a naive Canuck character to great effect, adopting an exaggerated persona of rugged outdoorsman bewildered and impressed in equal measure by the trials of modern life. A Crocodile Dundee of North America if you will.

He starts slow, keeping the energy low as he settles us all in. There aren’t many gags for a while, but patience is rewarded once he hits his storytelling stride.

Many of the anecdotes and observations come from his travels, and Campbell uses national stereotypes to great advantage. Coming from a supposedly peaceful, risk-averse country, he flatters the British with his respect for the hard-drinking culture in which caution is so often thrown to the wind. Like when we’re driving on our terrifyingly busy roads, for instance.

It’s a neat trick because he can simultaneous mock us and make us feel good, as we laugh resignedly: ‘Yes, we ARE like that,’ while being secretly proud of those quirky elements of national character.

As for his own character, Campbell is amiable, witty, unhurried and talkative – the ideal barroom companion, in other words. Exactly what you want in a conversationalist stand-up.