Entering the Iveagh Gardens on another beautiful evening put me in a perfect mood for more comedy. After a walk around the gardens and a few photos with the mime artists and delightful stilt performers, I made my way to The Jokeshop to see Seann Walsh and Eddie Pepitone. With no previous knowledge of the two acts, I sat with open anticipation.

MC John Lynn took to the stage and immediately regaled us with stories of his life in London and some of his fond memories of being a stand-up. Articulate and mellifluous in his delivery, Lynn provided a perfect opening for the night.

The immediately likeable Eddie Pepitone made his way to the stage and started his set with some stories of his experiences in Ireland so far. He was quick to point out that it was his first time in Europe and made some very funny quips about being 53, American and so brazenly uncultured as to have not been to Europe until now. He shared some of his career defining moments being on tour and using his artist pass and his love of crepes. Highlights of the set included a ballad for the everyman, musings on the process of filming commercials and a hilarious segment that saw Pepitone leave the stage, take an empty seat in the crowd and begin to heckle himself. It was a charming and endearing set overall.

Between the two main acts, we were once again treated to another segment with MC John Lynn. This time I actually found myself conversing with Lynn (sitting front row comes with a price). He asked me about my date sitting beside me and my sex experiences, after which I was obviously left quite red-faced but in knots of laughter. Being part of the joke was very fun!! It was with great enthusiasm that Lynn introduced Seann Walsh and our next set began.

Arriving on stage with bravado and energy, Seann Walsh proved engaging from the start. Beginning with a quick quip with my other half sitting next to me, Walsh dived head first into his set. A delightful mix of observational humour and animated storytelling, Walsh delivered a first class stand-up set. From very relatable stories about hangovers and public transport to some cleverly constructed banter about his attitude to life (and Jager Bombs), the audience were kept completely engaged throughout. One particular piece that saw Walsh make observations about our attempts to cover up physical slip-ups like banging our head or tripping onto the floor actually left me with a headache from laughing so hard!  It’s a difficult thing to take observational humour about everyday experiences and keep it fresh but Walsh pulled of the tricky feat of finding hilarity in the relatable and providing enough energy to make the material unique.

With two more wonderful acts and a great MC, my second night at the Vodafone Comedy Festival was just as good as the first. Very different in their styles but both equally accessible, I would certainly recommend taking a look at Eddie Pepitone & Seann Walsh.