To those unfamiliar with the name of Stephen K Amos, it is enough to say, he is one of the best Fringe performers in Edinburgh, with his hilarious, intelligent stand up that has thrilled audiences for nearly a decade. Each weekend after his brilliant solo routine he races over to the Gilded Balloon to perform his weekend chat show with some of the best comedians, musicians and generally odd characters the Festival has to offer. In previous years he has interviewed some impressive names including Jason Byrnes, Christian Slater and the wonderful opera burlesque Ali Mcgregor, who was one of the best finds at the Fringe 2007.
Try to imagine the audiences disappointment when on the opening night of his chat show his guests are, a tired Tim Vine, a not half as funny as he thinks Felix Dexter and the shockingly poor Axis of Awesome.
Amos may be hilarious, but with a poor guest list not even his charm and wit can turn tonight’s performance into anything special. Though credit where credit is due, he tries his hardest to wring out as many laughs as possible and does so without ever tapping into his jokes from his earlier stand up routine.
Amos is at his best when cracking jokes and insults with guests but just simply looks baffled at Axis of Awesome’s poor audience banter and even poorer song about Harry Potter. Things don’t really improve from then on with Felix Dexter who is so keen to talk about himself, he repeatedly cuts off Amos’s mid question. By the time Tim Vine is given a music quiz (and doesn’t know the answers to any of the questions) the audience’s have stopped caring.
This blatantly was a bad night for Amos, which is frustrating as in previous years this has been a Festival highlight for Hairline.
3/5 
Martin Miller
