Review by Steve Bennett

You've probably seen master ventriloquist Paul Zerdin on countless TV variety shows.

Which makes watching his Edinburgh debut somewhat redundant.

For though he's a brilliant exponent of his art, we've seen all this before.

Happy to stick with the same routine and the same old gags that have brought him fabulous success on the cabaret circuit, this is entirely unadventurous stuff.

It's only his indisputable skill at working a crowd that carries the show.

Zerdin comes across as a thoroughly likeable and playful bloke, gently ribbing the audience. And it's a tribute to him as a performer, as well as a vent, that he can generate laughs from the unexciting material.

But a successful act like this should use the festival as a chance to push the boundaries, rather than peddle the same old routine to much smaller audiences.

Review date: 1 Jan 2000
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett