A rare sunny day in October was the perfect backdrop for an afternoon at the Brighton Open Air Theatre (BOAT) to watch some comedy - socially distanced, of course.

Sara Pascoe played her second show in Brighton since lockdown and it went down a storm. Support was from local comedian Stephen Grant.

The Covid-19 safety measures at BOAT are vastly improved since they first reopened and their seating arrangements are a lot stricter.

In Brighton, we’re still in tier 1 and so being able to go out and visit an open air theatre is very lucky and we should be embrace it while we still can.

BOAT is run mainly by volunteers and needs support from everyone to make sure live performances can continue.

Starting the show, Pascoe introduces Stephen Grant onto the stage for a warm-up set.

Using anecdotes and stories from the crowd,  Grant’s quick jokes got the audience laughing in no time.

From a hilarious bit about the train from Brighton to Portsmouth being anything far from ‘express’ to a joke about hilarious Dutch names.

After the crowd was thoroughly warmed up, Sara Pascoe entered the stage wearing a suitable amount of layers for the changing weather, including a fabulous yellow coat that came off straight away.

Her set was full of stories about her game of “hide the vibrator” with her cleaner, the societal pressure of having kids, the compromises of marriage and an intricate piece of underwear which you’d need a PHD to work out how to put on.

Of course, there was also mention of her socialist icon dog Mouse, who is ultimately her soul mate.

Pascoe is not a stranger to Brighton, having studied a degree in English at the University of Sussex.

A very loud squawking seagull almost made her shudder as she remembered that they used to wake her up each morning, which is something we are all too familiar with.

Five stars

Jodie Allan