REVIEW: Jason Cook's Comedy Club, The Customs House, South Shields

I had tears in my eyes and could barely catch my breath between one all-consuming fit of giggles and the next.

Hebburn comic Jason has upped his game every time since the comedy club launched last year and the April show was, without a doubt, the best one yet.

Jason got his audience suitably revved up for his guests with hilarious tales of his recent holiday with the in-laws and by asking awkward questions of the maths teacher in the front row.

The educator’s ship surveying mate, who seemed to be the only person who hadn’t spotted the massive ship docked on the other side of the river, provided a running joke throughout the night that had everyone giggling.

Jason also used the night to announce the first ever South Tyneside Comedy Festival, which is set to kick off this July.

People seemed very excited by the news, and the queue at the box office during the interval spoke volumes – it was heart-warming to see people immediately getting behind the idea.

Last night’s show was kicked off by Rob Rouse.

The comic is a real story teller and has a knack for painting a sometimes disturbing mental picture.

Tales of his ‘housemates’ – his wife and two young children – were ridiculously funny.

He shared anecdotes from his life about everything from holding his daughter in the air at the side of the road while she relieves herself and regularly being joined by his son while he’s trying to have some ‘alone time’ in the bathroom.

A lot of his humour was based around the toilet habits of his children and himself, but it made for some side-splitting stuff.

He also gave a graphically-gruesome insight into what life is like for a man in his 40s, with a disturbingly-detailed description of the first time he received a certain medical examination.

He had everyone creased.

Lee Ridley was up next. The comic, better known as The Lost Voice Guy, offered something many people in the audience had never seen before.

In stand up comedy, being able to speak is probably the most important thing, but Lee, who has cerebral palsy, doesn’t let not having a voice stop him from making people laugh.

With the help of his trusty iPad, he treated the audience to a near-the-knuckle set that balanced precariously on the line between offensive and funny.

I think some people were a little unsure at first, but Lee doesn’t take himself too seriously. He poked fun at his life and his disability and let us know it was okay to laugh along with him.

Wearing a T-shirt bearing the slogan ‘My mum says I’m speshal’, Lee delivered his set unconventionally but fantastically.

His political humour was extremely topical and really on the money.

He might not be able to speak, but this guy has a lot to say, and we should all listen closely.

The show was closed by Mock The Week regular Gary Delaney, and no one has ever made me laugh like he did.

Delaney is king of the one-liner and he threw them at his willing audience in quick succession.

I hardly had time to recover from one laughing fit before I was hit by another.

I was driven to tears of laughter and clutched my sides as I was completely consumed by his comedy.

The comic tested the boundaries of his audience and pushed the willing crowd deeper and deeper into a well of depravity with one filth-laden joke after another.

He was rude and crude and his set just got more and more offensive as it went on, and the audience ate it up.

Delaney is undoubtedly one of the sharpest and funniest comics I’ve ever seen. He’s returning for the comedy festival in July and I can’t wait to see him again.

Limited tickets are still available for the June show with Paul Tonkinson and Justin Moorhouse. Click here to book.

Click here to go to the Comedy Club website.