NOEL James is a confusing comedian to watch.

At times I was convinced his act was concerned with cheesy one-liners; at other times, a surreal comedian doling out absurd concepts; and at other times he seemed purely deadpan. I never knew what to expect; unfortunately this isn’t a good thing.

The overwhelming feel of James’s set was that he hadn’t really decided which type of persona he wanted to display.

Funnily enough, James actually describes his comedy as his own self on stage, instead of a persona. I’d recommend he develops one properly, as it might help his jokes gain a lot more presence. I felt that a lot of the weaker material was really peddled at us, with an overly theatrical wink.

It was infuriating that some of James’s funniest jokes were delivered with a perfect throwaway attitude, but next to so many “here comes the punchline” grins, these lines were completely lost on the majority of the audience.

The biggest shame about James’s set, however, was that in terms of his subject matter, nothing new was really offered up.

Previous girlfriends, going for a curry, and an impression of the Elephant Man: all topics which would equally have felt at home in a comedy show from 50 years ago. I’d love to think that Noel James could change and improve his set, but he feels very set in his somewhat lame one-liners and “bizarre-o” concepts.

- Louise Jones