Review: Headlights Stand Up for Dig Deep

The Hive became home to UEA’s comedy talent on March 3 as The Headlights Society and Dig Deep hooked up to provide some great entertainment and to raise money for charity work in East Africa.

After a slightly nervous start, the show evolved into a brilliant showcase of UEA’s finest funny bones. The Headlights Comedy Society put on a well-rounded show to celebrate the end of Dig Deep Week. Every penny raised from the night went towards UEA Climbs Kili for Dig Deep 2013 and their fantastic work providing clean water, sanitation and renewable energy in East Africa.

Photo: Elliot Wengler

Despite a rather feeble turnout, the participation was brilliant and everyone was encouraged to get involved with the show. While some of us got away with just saying our names, others just couldn’t resist a good heckle. One unlucky student found himself on the end of Feder Tot’s communist spatula during a slightly surreal – but somehow fitting – capitalist exorcism.

Feder Tot making use of his communist spatula

Throughout the night Elliot Wengler offered jittery but proficient compèring. He created a comfortable back-and-forth atmosphere with the audience and his ability to conjure up even the most obscure reference to 2008 popstars was pretty enviable.

Matthew Blaikie gave an extremely confident performance, considering it was his first ever attempt at stand up. He played off any nerves well and gave a hilarious, observational set.

The show was neatly bookended with two highlight performances. Farhan Mitha set himself up as the one to keep an eye on. He started the show off on the right foot with a brilliant set. His honest anecdotes about the pitfalls of being a Fresher and the struggles of living on campus was something the audience could relate to and meant he received eager applause. It’s good to know we aren’t the only ones who made a fool of ourselves during Freshers’ week.

Headliner and last act of the evening, Harry Wright, also lived up to his star billing – having recently performed his own one-man show the expectations were high. Harry’s show was heartfelt and his self-depricating humour made him lovable with just the right amount of sass to keep it funny.

Although some acts fell a little flat (it’s always a bit awkward to joke about how incredibly rich you’re going to be after uni), the night was an overall success. A fun way to end Dig Deep week and a great showcase of the comedic talent Headlights has to offer.

If you want to know more about Dig Deep and their impending climb up Kilimanjaro then check out their information here. And if you fancy a giggle yourself then you can get tickets to the Headlights Revue coming soon to the LCR.