★★★★☆
The prolific Irish stand-up mines personal tragedy for tears and laughter aplenty in a rollicking return to the Edinburgh Fringe. Here’s our Ed Byrne: Tragedy Plus Time review.
In February 2022, Ed Byrne announced that his brother, Paul, had died at the age of 44.
Paul was a comedy director, and, since the elder Byrne is one of the most accomplished Irish stand-up acts on the UK circuit, it was probably inevitable that Ed’s little brother would feature in his career at some point. Tragedy plus time, and all that.
The result might be Byrne’s best – certainly his most personal – Edinburgh show yet. A fitting tribute to his brother’s life on and around the comedy circuit, he weaves anecdotes and observations to craft a riot of a show much less depressing than a show about the grieving process might sound.
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With a seemingly endless stream of observational rants on everything from ‘Irish goodbyes’ to why we waste time fighting the people we love, the tone ebbs and flows masterfully. Bits pop back up and reoccur with the kind of practiced ease that only comes from spending the best part of three decades hanging around with microphones in pubs.
Not every joke has the polished and original edge of some of Byrne’s best material, but when the story he’s telling feels so important, it doesn’t need to. Skilfully avoiding the classic Edinburgh ‘15 minutes of sad stuff at the end,’ Byrne manages to find the light in the most personally devastating of circumstances and keep the audience laughing throughout.
Unashamedly bold and emotional without feeling saccharine, Tragedy Plus Time feels like exactly the sort of show a headline comedian should put on at Edinburgh.
Ed Byrne: Tragedy Plus Time is playing at the Assembly Rooms – Music Hall at 21:30 until 27 August. You can view our comprehensive guide to the entire Fringe here.
