Jimmy Carr – Rapier Wit

Civic Hall,

Wolverhampton

By Rita Maman

Fresh from the backlash of his ill-advised joke about wounded soldiers, Jimmy Carr walked on stage to rapturous applause.

Playing the first of three nights at the Civic Hall this month, the comedian drew laughs from fans before he even came out.

Saturday night’s two-hour gig for over-16s only, began with an on-screen introduction with some warm-up jokes and an oath for the audience to not be offended.

The newly-slimline star donned a smart tuxedo and a poppy, which did not go unnoticed by the audience.

Describing Wolverhampton as a nice town and a great place for comedy, the comic hilariously confronted every taboo subject you can think of.

Accompanied by his trademark sofa and ‘Carrtoons’, he repeatedly picked on a few audience members and dealt with hecklers superbly.

When asked about that recent controversy in a Q&A session, Carr admitted he was “pretty torn up” about the public reaction, saying the gag was taken out of context and repeated to families of bereaved soldiers to get a response.

The majority of his gags were, as usual, quite edgy and largely unprintable, but the Civic crowd knew what they were in for and kept their oath of going home unoffended.