The Warren’s a cheerful place this year, with papier-mâché animals resting beneath twinkling fairy lights, and the sound of laughter and excitement ringing in the air. 

The Brighton Fringe has enjoyed glorious weather during the first half of May and there’s an uncharacteristic warmth that lasts throughout the evenings, tempting people to stay out and enjoy the friendly, bright atmosphere. 

It’s with this background that Casual Violence’s new show, ‘Slow Fade to Bleak,’ is set. 

Inside the Warren’s Theatre Box, a grimly sealed former shipping container with no natural light, the five men who form Casual Violence sidled onto the stage with characteristically wild eyes. 

Casual Violence are masters of dark, suspenseful and witty comedy, with sketches that tip ordinary themes – male pattern balding, department stores’ Santa recruitment, fruit smoothies – into swirling descents into madness. 

They create characters that are realistic and entertaining, certainly, but also largely unsettling, and the laughter that roars from the crowd is definitely tinged with manic fear. 

The transitions between sketches are a bit off-kilter, but the sketches themselves are inspired and delivered with skill from five comedians who complement each other well. 

Another Fringe has brought another outstanding show by Casual Violence.