Review: John Bishop at Arena Birmingham
When you’re playing to more than 15,000 people a night you would presume that acts can do anything but wing it, however that was the title of comedian John Bishop’s latest tour that came to Arena Birmingham last night as part of a three date residency.
Winging It is John Bishop’s fifth tour following the third series of his In Conversation With programme earlier this year, as well a stint hosting ITV’s The Nightly Show.
And as fans entered the arena last night there was no mistaking whose show it was, with Bishop’s name plastered across the cavernous arena stage.
Welcoming everyone, Bishop recounted Birmingham tales including a stag do along Broad Street and the biggest fight he has ever seen happening whilst compering at the Glee Club.
It was then straight into the two hour show, of which the first half focused on reaching fifty and what this brought with it before ending on a hilarious tale of the time that he took all his mates to watch U2 with comedic consequences.
The second half focused more on his children leaving home and the reality that this brought himself and his partner Melanie, as well as looking at technology and the pitfalls of modern dating approaches such as Tinder and Naked Attraction
The show ended with a short video showing various members (and animals) of the Bishop family as well proving the stories told within the show were true. It seemed a very warm and apt way to end the show, highlighting the love that John has for his family that was so prevalent throughout the show.
Once a comedian reaches arena level there’s a worry of two things, one that the material will no longer be relatable and two that any sense of connection will be lost within the vast space. However neither of these rang true last night, with Bishop successful in not only basing the show on the common and relatable thread of family but also making the arena feel like the most intimate show possible. There was certainly no Winging It.
