And there we have it, the first (and hopefully not last) perfect show of this year’s Edinburgh Fringe. Liam Withnail, who to my shame I have never seen in action before, is a sensational comedian. Aside from that he is a deeply likeable human being, with a rare ability to connect with an audience.
His 2025 show, ‘Big Strong Boy’ joins Eden Sher’s (back again after a triumphant 2024 showing) in the ‘trauma featuring’ rather than ‘trauma dump’ genre. This is the 18th anniversary of his decision to run away from home, then aged 18, it wasn’t a joyful episode in his life, but it certainly helped make him the man he is today.
‘Big Strong Boy’ is very much a ‘state of the Liam’ assessment – based on four pillars: Health, Purpose, Location and Relationships. It’s a smart, easily digested map for the show, and it works a treat.
If that sounds more deep and meaningful than laugh-out-loud funny, you haven’t reckoned with Liam’s talent to observe his own history and to amplify every ridiculous, joyful, barmy moment of his teenage years. A son of Dagenham, he wasn’t destined to stay in the ‘2nd unhappiest place to stay in the country’, and gentrification by way of a Costa vendy isn’t doing it for him in 2025.
Even so, he lovingly sketches in his Irish Dad and Essex-Born love and the sheer impossibility of either he or his brother getting in trouble. No matter their crime, no matter how ludicrous, there is always the cat to blame. It’s here his toxic love affair with alcohol begins, one he explains at the top of the show in graphic and hilarious detail, as well as the problematic relationship with food he’s substituted for it.
Cue some amazing schtick about yet another relationship, this time with his online coach. You are never far from an eruption of laughter at any point in the set. His Easter Egg to Grenade bar misadventure is just one memorable sequence.
“And there we have it, the first (and hopefully not last) perfect show of this year’s Edinburgh Fringe.“
It’s just such a cleverly created show, with just the right amount of detail peppered in at the right moment to take the audience back into 18-year-old Liam’s mind, cluttered with puppy love, and utterly othered by a hometown which didn’t fit him in the least.
With the pacing of a good domestic drama, he takes the room with him to the brink of one horrifying decision, before slipping sideways onto the plane north. That’s right, he’s one of ours now Edinburgers. How that happens and how he negotiates life in Auld Reekie is both captivating and frequently funny. It’s not so much gags, as underlining the sheer absurdities of life he wandered into rather frequently.
If being a first rate comedy storyteller wasn’t enough, he really does know how to work a crowd. There isn’t a tonne of audience interaction, but the snippets he indulges in are super friendly and arm him with extra ammunition later on. Like I say, he’s a smart comic.
Now, I don’t need every comedian to get deep and meaningful in a set, frankly I’ve seen too many brave souls substituting Stand Up for therapy. However, there are moments in this show to raise the little hairs on your arms – in a good way. As with all the best storytellers, Liam finds his end in his beginning, and it’s incredibly satisfactory.
It turns out I’m all for deep and meaningful if the majority of the show is hilarious and the prevailing mood is genuinely uplifting.
I wish Liam Withnail a fantastic Fringe run, he deserves it, and the best of luck with his Squirrel-esque liaisons with baked goods. Yes, dear reader, I am being mysterious, because I want you to go see the show and find out what the heck I’m talking about.
Show details
Venue: Venue 515: Monkey Barrel Comedy, 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR (Google Maps)
Date(s): Tue 29 Jul to Sun 24 Aug (26 shows)
Time(s): 6:10pm (60 mins)
Age recommendation: 16+
Price: From £8 (concessions available)
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