Latitude new comedy act award runners and riders

 

The schtick: Short, sharp jokes with great ideas. When it really worked, like a sort of female Tim Vine.

How she'll be remembered: Those lines: “Everyone loves Brighton, it's so optimistic. All the shops have buckets and spades. It's a pebble beach.”

Biggest clunk: Drifting into slightly arch, Meera Syal-esque territory halfway through after an awesome first half. Nicely pulled back by the end, though.

Audience appreciation: Well-received, especially for the first act of the day. 8/10.

 

The schtick: Puppyish, enthusiastic, looks about 12. Like a limbier Russell Howard. 

How he'll be remembered: by the young, favourably: lots of material about being at school, living at home with the parents and paedophile jokes. By everyone over 25: he seems good, but he goes so fast it's a little hard to tell. So like Zane Lowe, really.

Biggest clunk: Pretty clunk-free, really. Even the weaker material was held together by a full-force delivery.

Audience appreciation: Certainly the audience favourite: 9/10. 

 

The schtick: Jokes about being a lesbian for a mainstream audience. The girl deserves credit: on a mass stage, it's not an easy sell and she made a good fist of it. 

How she'll be remembered: Having the most distinctive material of all the nominees. And for having a surname that sounds like ROFL.

Biggest clunk: Opening by declaring she tells every festival that it's the best festival. Probably the clunkiest clunk of the show. 

Audience appreciation: Slow to warm up to Suzi, then into the act, and then drifting a bit by the end. 6/10.

 

The schtick: Looks like an everyman, sounds like Rafe Spall did in the Shadow Line. Didn't see it? Imagine a drunk Columbo with mild Alan Carr undertones. 

How he'll be remembered: confident and well-worked jokes on suffering at the hands of abusive IT staff and trying to pick up women. 

Biggest clunk: Talking about old kids' TV for a bit too long. Normally, that would be slightly tired territory; here, it went clean over the head's of an audience that largely still watches CBBC.

Audience appreciation: 7/10.