Another Blizzard Comedy show has came and went, and on the eve of Manchester Pride weekend no less! What poetry.
At Blizzard, we’ve never been a stranger to mostly or entirely queer line-ups, but it’s always nice to have an excuse to go all in on the queer theming and properly celebrate the elevated form of the art of stand-up that is Queer comedy. I’m obviously biased being one of the gaystm, but I think there’s just something inherently delightful about stand-up comedy as a medium for comics from across the LGBTQIA+ spectrum to showcase themselves, present themselves as unapologetically who they are, and really just revel in the campness of the whole format.
In a time where we’re increasingly being narrativized around and having our agency and voices stripped of us, it’s refreshing to have a night like ours who really prioritize amplifying queer voices within comedy, allowing us to speak our own truths and regain control of our own narratives as just silly little guys who want to live our lives a lil fruitily.
But anyway. Enough foreplay. Let’s get onto the main event, the staggeringly brilliant line-up of comics we had to celebrate another year of gay Christmas here in sunny old Manchester town.
Opening the show we had Bobbie Jones – a long-time friend and favourite of the show who has performed with us so often I’m probably making myself redundant by once again writing about how brilliant she is, but it cannot be overstated. Bobbie has performed with us live on average I’d say once a year since 2019, excluding 2020 when we had no live shows for some reason, can’t remember why. And while she’s always had an effortless charisma to hook audiences into her camp whimsy, she’s only gotten more and more comfortable on stage the longer she’s been performing with us. She has blossomed into one of the most engaging and brilliantly funny comics I’ve ever had the pleasure to work with. An endlessly creative writer, crafting surreal segments that really speak to our primary demographic of slowly aging queer millennials, but balanced beautifully with some fantastic wordplay, pacing, delivery and storytelling throughout her set. A true stalwart of an entertainer.
In the middle of this delectable comedy sandwich we had two superb middle spots, one of whom made his debut at Blizzard this show. Jen Roberts is a quintessential Blizzard comedian that we’ve been missing out on for ages. Where else is a better home for jokes about being a gay trans slut and thirsting over young Joseph Stalin? Feels like an act made for us, ngl. The club fell in love with them immediately. They’re an act who has such a good turn of phrase, delivering jokes that are not only conceptually funny but also creating memorable vocal stims out of them that are going to live rent free in the heads of the neurodivergent gays who make up our audience for possibly the rest of their lives.
Jen is a relatively new act but has already established a strong foundation to build from. They boast a seemingly very natural comedic delivery, a background and life experience full of ideas to mine for comedy and a mind that revels in crafting jokes out of some of the more whimsical and absurd experiences of his life. Definitely one to watch, and one we’ll be having back soon!
Next, we were rejoined by Mary Cross, a comic we’ve not had on for a couple of years but is always a beacon of pure joy and a great fit for this night. Mary has always been a fun act, but this set she tried something a little more narratively satisfying. She regaled us with a story about her experiences of school, specifically leavers day in the ’90s, working in related material so smoothly it resulted in an incredibly polished 10-minute set that works as a fantastic pitch for a potential solo show. I really hope it’s something she builds on because I need a front row seat to that show.
Mary’s always been a highly enjoyable act, but at some point between her last appearance and now she’s really stepped up her game even more, fully cementing herself as a staple of the comedy circuit and embedding herself as yet another queer icon we are lucky to get to work with.
And closing this incredibly LGBTQIA+ special of Blizzard comedy we were rejoined by Reese Wetherspoon. Reese made their first appearance at our club last October and absolutely smashed the balls off of their 10 spot so hard we didn’t have any cis men in the room after they were done. So obviously we needed to get them back to headline and they didn’t disappoint at all.
Drag and comedy are disciplines that go together really naturally anyway, but something about Reese’s persona absolutely leaves me howling every time. I think it’s how slightly understated their delivery is compared to their visual presentation. It’s a really fun contrast, not exactly deadpan, but conversational and slick in ways that leave punchlines constantly catching you off guard, and before you can fully recover there’s another three ambushing you.
Reese’s delivery is second to none, as far as stand-up is concerned. Their cadence is perfect. They’re constantly slipping in running gags, ad libs, have an incredibly well-crafted economy of words, and yet make it all look so natural and unplanned. They embody the platonic ideal of stand-up, but actually succeed at it. If anything, they’re way too talented to keep on doing our little show, but I’m gonna keep booking them until they realize that.
And that was our gay little show! I do hope you enjoyed it if you were there, or if you caught any of the stream. We’ve got another show on October 15th, tickets aren’t available yet, but keep an eye out on our linktree for future shows, or sign up to our newsletter to have details emailed directly to your inbox as soon as they’re announced.
Follow us on socials, join our mailing list, and all that jazz. This will be our last live show of the year so make sure you don’t miss us! ❤
