Edinburgh Fringe comedy review

I suspect that nobody on the Fringe gives more bang for your buck than Tom Cashman, speaking as he does at around 250 words a minute. For a whole hour. It was quite the feat, as his brain must run at three times that speed.

An Australian with ‘head boy’ energy – he’s ‘Alex Horne’ in their version of Taskmaster – Cashman invited the audience to offer him encouraging words by means of a QR code and received plenty of affirmation… plus one dry observation which he seized upon, making it a key point of the show.

He’s achingly smart, sufficiently self-aware to own and celebrate his nerdiness, pushing logic to the nth degree so it ends up being daft. His playful graphics illustrate overthinking basic interactions and the pacy delivery puts the audience in a flat spin of hilarity.

There was plenty to love from this personable, charming performer recounting stories of his family and his stand-up thus far. A self-deprecating anecdote about a set-to with a New Zealand TV host leads seamlessly to an anxiety-inducing tale of a missing passport that would have chimed with most of the people in the room.

His pièce de résistance, for which I offer no spoilers, will have your eyebrows raised over the back of your head as you laugh with shock.  

Cashman’s material was a fantastic combination of whip-smart observation and the endearingly personal, successfully connecting with the audience. At times you might want a break from the speedy delivery – and, to be fair, he did take it down a gear for the big story – but this is a wonderfully polished and, yes, proficient hour.

Review date: 15 Aug 2026
Reviewed by: Julia Chamberlain
Reviewed at: Monkey Barrel Comedy Club