Melbourne International Comedy Festival review

Proving that punters pay much less attention to show blurbs than comedians might think, few in Lewis Garnham’s audience – myself included – realised that Taking My Time This Time is actually a work in progress

Nor would anybody have reason to, given this is an accomplished hour of stand-up that skilfully weaves storytelling, observational comedy and contemporary commentary into a coherent whole.

It’s an elegantly constructed Matryoshka doll of nested stories, real and made-up. Many routines take a slightly surreal turn as he extrapolates a minor observation into something bigger, while a central yarn about a goat on a boat – his Life Of Pi – sets the absurd tone.

Garnham has been living in London in a high-rise apartment that’s alien to him. But he feels he’s developed a connection with the bloke in the flat ‘in the sky’ opposite him through sight alone – which says something about the state of male friendships.

Showing similar hidden depths, complaints about tiered subscription models become a droll comment on how capitalism has turned so much into a monetised game, linking in to notions of what future historians will make of today’s digital artefacts.

But other routines are just funny for his ramped-up reaction to a simple observation – the scantiness of his partner’s G-strings being a prime example.  Garnham can certainly write a gag and build a routine of accumulating momentum that pulls everyone along in its wake. 

Running a little short, he wraps up with a tried and tested five  minutes from his back catalogue, which is the only real indication this is a WIP.

Many comics would be happy with this show as is – so given that Garnham really is ‘taking his time this time’ to put together the best hour he can is a very promising indicator for what this material will ultimately end up being.

• Lewis Garnham: Taking My Time This Time is on at Bodriggy Brewery at 6.30pm and 8pm tomorrow (15th) and The Comics Lounge at 7pm on Saturday. He will also be bringing a work in progress to the Edinburgh Fringe, playing The Gilded Saloon from August 17.

Review date: 14 Apr 2026
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett
Reviewed at: Melbourne International Comedy Festival