Review from the Women In Comedy festival

It seems like half of Manchester’s Irish expat community has come out to see Emer Maguire on her first UK visit as a touring comedian. Much of the first half of her show at the Women in Comedy festival seems to be a game of ‘cheer the place name,’ and never more so than with her hometown of Coleraine. 

One of her cousins is here, as is a woman who used to work with her mum - it gives proceedings a very parochial air – and that’s before you even consider she has a particularly intimate relationship with some of her fans. She mentions some by name, and thanks one for leaving her a goody bag of dog treats and Lego bricks before the show. 

It speaks to the air of friendly community she’s built around her, but can be a bit baffling – if not downright alienating – for outsiders who have no history with the comedian. I did, for a while, feel like I’d walked in on someone else’s family gathering.

Perfectly Chaotic is based largely around Maguire’s autism, and speaking so frankly about it might be what helps forms those bonds with some members of her audience. She covers some of the obvious comedy bases, such as strangers diagnosing her before anybody medical ever did, but generally the condition serves as a background hum to her anecdotes, explaining why she gets into some situations and her unconventional reaction to them.

She is open and chatty about much of her life, from serious health scares to a highly eventful holiday to Sri Lanka, which makes up much of the second half. Once she gets into her stride after the interval, the appeal is much more apparent. She’s a warm storyteller, and while the yarns might not be awash with jokes, the consistently amusing, self-deprecating tone goes a long way. The pacing is strong, and the relaxed attitude draws people in.

Maguire has some cracking comedy songs, too, defined by adept musicality rather than the more simplistic techniques of some musical comics – though they are only sparingly used in the show. Her trademark track is an optimistic anthem of anti-sectarianism based on the fact that it’s someone’s character that’s important, not whether they call the top right-hand bit of the island Northern Ireland or North of Ireland. Obvious, perhaps, but not always acknowledged in a politically charged atmosphere.  

Other standout songs include her version of The Sound Of Music’s My Favorite Things and another about taking idioms literally, a clear consequence of the ’tism. It’s wry if quite superficial – her ‘two birds with one stone’ routine, for example, is slight compared to Ken Cheng’s trademark routine drilling into the phrase.

In a long, wide-ranging show, touching on three hours with interval, she covers a meeting with VIPs unlikely to endear her to republicans, her obsession with history, a hatred of extreme sports, odd behaviour within family group chats and so much more.

She speaks with sincerity about how happy she is that her stand-up career is going well, which avoids being too saccharine due to its sincerity. If it takes us out of the comedy, it’s in keeping with a performer who lays out so much of her life in her act – the very thing that builds such a firm connection with her fans.

Review date: 6 Oct 2026
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett
Reviewed at: Manchester Frog And Bucket